A BURNT-OUT CASE - Graham Greene

Rarely you ever feel uplifted with joy after reading Greene, but you do marvel at the incredible writing.

 

AUTOPSY FOR AN EMPIRE - Dmitri Volkogonov

 

Simply outstanding.

Seven mini biographies written by a man who was part of the machine.  The combination of these seven , all who fairly limited intellects  (Andropov, the cleverest but his refusal to let go of Leninism made him as hopeless as the real dullards) , lead Russia down a path of suffering and hardship for seven decades.

I can't recommend it enough if you have any interest in politics or history.

HEROES- Paul Johnson

 

A remarkable collection of essays from ancient to modern times, of people the author has deemed heroes for his own reasons .

The most interesting for me was Mae West, what an amazing woman.

A HISTORY OF THE WORLD IN 10 1/2 CHAPTERS - Julian Barnes

 

Very funny, laugh out loud in places, more a connected series of short stories than a novel but great entertainment

BEFORE MIDNIGHT- Rex Stout

 

IN CHARACTER - John Mortimer

 

A compelling collection of interviews

FOOTSTEPS OF THE HAWKE- Andrew Vachss

 

Another in the "Burke" series. Quality crime.

THE BERLIN WALL - Frederick Taylor

A book full of real life Bond villain's.  Fascinating read ,  the suffering this failed ideology caused is staggering.

One of my books of the year.

 
 

TRUE GRIT -Charles Portis

 

The story of a 14 year old girl, who along with U.S Marshall Rooster Cogburn and a Texas Ranger track down the killer of her father.

A great short read, so much better than the movie, where John Wayne was 25 years too old to play Cogburn.

Recommended

GAME WITHOUT RULES - Michael Gilbert

 

This is the third time I've read this set of short espionage stories.

They are so much fun, each time feels like the first time.

DOCTOR ZHIVAGO -Boris Pasternack

 

Due to the film, when you mention this book , you get "its a love story".  True, it is a love story but the real star  is Russia.

This is fantastic, one of the top 10 novels I've read all time.  It is one of those books you start reading and find that two hours has passed by .

Brilliant

LITERARY OCCASIONS -V.S Naipaul

 

You could never accuse Naiapul of playing it for laughs, in fact he becomes very hard work.  His novels are great, his travel is great, these essays however, come across as written by a man with a massive chip on his shoulder about the world.

Great writing, not enjoyable reading

ILL MEET BY MIDNIGHT - W. Stanley Moss

 

This is a diary kept by Moss when he and several others landed on Crete and kidnapped a German General during WWII,( as you do.)

It had no great bearing on the war but as an effort by a 22 year old and a 27 year its takes some beating.

Worth tracking down and reading 

CATCH 22 -Joseph Heller

 

One of the great novels, been many years since I've read it but its still fresh and will stay that way as long as humans are around

SACRIFICE - Andrew Vachss

Another in the Burke series. I used to own the whole set, got rid of them and have now found they are hard to find.

A dark story for a wet Sunday
 

CONFESSIONS A Life of Failed Promises - A.N. Wilson

 

One of the best memoirs I've read.  Fully frank, wonderfully interesting, and very readable.

Wilson is an all around interesting man.  

THE SHOOTING PARTY - Anton Chekhov

 

Chekhov's only novel, and very early writing.  It's an ordinary murder mystery but you can see the start of the magic writer be became.

THE LAST DEVIL TO DIE -Richard Osman

The fourth instalment of the Thursday Murder Club Series.  An absolute delight 

EAMON DE VALERA The Man Who Was Ireland - Tim Pat Coogan

A very complex man ,in a very complex country, in very complex times.

He held such sway for so long, and religion, it has so much to answer for, as De Valera does , keeping the Irish under its thumb, disgusting.

I agree with the author, Michael Collins did more than De Valera, but its just an opinion

 

DOWN HERE - Andrew Vachss

 

A later entry in the Burke series.  They books are well written comics but the subject matter is very noir.

JESUS- A. N. Wilson

 

The Jesus of History and the Christ of Faith are two separate beings, with very different stories.  It is difficult enough to reconstruct the first, and in the attempt we are likely to irreparable harm to the second.

Wilson studied theology and and was a practicing Christian for many years  but

..as the years went by, however, and I had read more, and reflected more deeply on what I had read, this would not quite do.  I had to admit that I found it impossible to believe that a first-century Galilean holy man had at anytime of his life believed himself to be the second person of the Trinity.  It was such an inherently improbable thing for a monotheistic Jew to believe.

This is a great read, its not anti in anyway but as above Wilson points at the improbability of it all.  As someone who had Jesus's story rammed down his throat as a child, his conclusion is the same as mine, much more intelligently put of course, but, there was this guy called Jesus and his followers started a Jesus cult.

This is a book I will read again.

RUSSIA REVOLUTION AND CIVIL WAR 1917-1921 -Antony Beevor

 

Another very good read from Beevor. I didn't know that it took nearly 5 years before the Bolsheviks took total control and that the US, Britain and Japan were all involved.

The slaughter and cruelty was horrendous, the white Russians were actually worse than the Bolsheviks during the civil war but as we know the 'Reds' made mass slaughter their own in the following 70 years.

As always very readable .

THE ELIZABETHANS - A N Wilson

An interesting read about the characters and happenings during the reign of Elizabeth I.

I found it harder read that Wilson's 'Victorians set' but that maybe have just been my mood at the time.

But what a blood thirsty bunch even the "nice people " were

 

CREATORS - Paul Johnson

 

I love reading Paul Johnson and this is a lovely collection of essays about people who created things.

He is much more positive here than he was in the first book of this set "Intellectuals" where I agreed with every word he wrote.

I agree with every word he writes here apart from his religious opinions, a great read and now just have to track down the third in the series "Heroes"

KITTY'S SALON - Nigel Jones, Urs Brunner and Julia Schrammel

 

Reading this is three hours I'll never get back, pretty much junk

JERUSALEM - Simon Sebag Montefiore

 

Simon Sebag Montefiore writes another book of brilliant narrative history on a 'town' which probably has more history than any on earth.

Fascinating, fact upon fact.  Like all his work you could spend years segueing off following characters that are major historical figures in their own right.

THE DICTATORS - Richard Overy

 

This isn't a biography of these two monsters, rather a comparison of their two systems of dictatorship.

Its a brilliant read.  There are 200 pages of notes and bibliography.  Just fantastic 

WORDY - Simon Schama

 

A book of essays which as the title suggests are very wordy.

But if you relax and accept that eleven words will do instead of three you get a very enjoyable read.

STALIN- The Court of The Red Tsar - Simon Sebag Montefiore

A fantastic book on this monster.  There is too much information to convey here but needless to say, everything he did ' was for the people'- these types are so good at justifying their crimes as something to benefit " the people".

Another fantastic read.

 

THE TRUCE - Primo Levi

The follow up to "If This Is A Man" -although published 16 years after the first book.

This covers from when Auschwitz was liberated until Levi returns to his native Italy.

It is another story of the human will to survive and while not as harrowing as surviving Auschwitz it is still remarkable.

These books need to be taught in schools.  This history must never be forgotten.

 

THE WORLD - Simon Sebag Montefiore

 

A remarkable big, big,  book.  Huge in scope , its the story of humanity.

There is not a chapter in this book that if you wanted to you could segue off and find a years reading.  The detail is stunning.

I would suggest reading reviews by professionals and then go buy it.

Reading this was the best 9 days reading I have had in a long long time

ABYSS The Cuban Missile Crisis 1962- Max Hastings

 

Lots of interesting facts in here.  Kennedy or Khrushchev were never going to start a nuclear war but there was plenty of opportunity for pilots and sailors to do so. The weapons had no central locking so once they were on a plane or submarine it was all on the individuals.

Kennedy comes out of this looking good, he had some hawks around him that were more than happy to see the world burn, even Robert McNamara wasn't the murderous bastard he turned into over Vietnam.

Hastings is always a good read.

A HISTORY OF BRITAIN 2 : 1603-1776 The British Wars- Simon Schama

 

Very very interesting, covers the Stuarts for most part.

I found, however, it is a very heavy read, very wordy and  it time shifts a bit.

Reading it was time well spent but not a relaxing read

NOODLING FOR FLATHEADS - Burkhard Bilger

A series of essays about the US you never hear about.  These stories are as far removed from Hollywood or Fifth Avenue as you are likely to find.

These essays cover noodling for flatheads , catching catfish by hand ( putting your hand under logs etc and grabbing the fish by its mouth).

Cock fighting, at the time of writing it was still legal in some states.  Moonshine brewing , still huge but being over taken by meth cooking. 

Eating squirrels brains, frog farming, so a totally different view of the US, fascinating in parts.

Worth finding and having a read

1968 IN AMERICA - Charles Kaiser

The title is a bit deceptive, the main thrust of this book is the race for the Democratic Presidential nomination for 1968, concentrating on Eugene McCarthy.

This doesn't however detract from what is a very enjoyable read. It does show what a gutless wonder Robert Kennedy was, he wouldn't declare himself as a runner until McCarthy had done the hard work and Johnson had declared he wasn't standing again.

Martin Luther King gets a good mention.  Interesting the book states that King's funeral was underwritten by Nelson Rockerfeller which was never publicized.

There is a gloss over on the music and Vietnam, but its mainly the Democratic Primaries.

Politics is a grubby, nasty business, populated by nasty,grubby individuals.

A book worth reading

 

OUR TIMES- A.N. Wilson

 

The third and final part of Wilson's overview of the UK from Victoria's birth until Gordon Brown.

I haven't enjoyed a set of books as much for years, very funny in places.

Wilson could never be accused of being faint hearted about sharing opinion.  Great fun and well worth the time

PARIS-AFTER THE LIBERATION: 1944-1949 - Antony Beevor & Artemis Cooper

Interesting, but fairly limited in scope.  The book concentrates on de Gaulle and the post war governments.

The main source material appears to be the dairies of Cooper's grand father ,Duff Cooper.(which are a very good read).

Interesting but there was more material that could have ben included which would have made it more interesting.

AFTER THE VICTORIANS - A.N. Wilson

Fantastic overview of the first 50 years of the 20th century. Lots of gossip, lots of humour.  

Wilson covers off all the major events, wars, literature, movies , politics. Highly recommended.
 

LES PARISIENNES -Anne Sebba

Good in parts but I didn't engage with the writing.  Deadly dull in places which is a shame as its an interesting subject.

I've just picked up "Paris After The Liberation" -by Antony Beevor & Artemis Cooper, which will cover much of the same ground and I know Beevor & his wife can write serious history & be entertaining

THE STASI FILES - Anthony Glees

 

THE BULLET THAT MISSED -Richard Osman

 

Delightful, is the best description of this book and it's two predecessors.

The characters are just lovely and its laugh out loud in places.  Reading this was what I did yesterday and it was the best 4 hours I've spent in a long time.

SNOW - John Banville

 

Just the beautifully written country house murder mystery.  The motive and killer are an easy pick but the writing is gorgeous.

Banville wrote the Quirke series under his pen name , Benjamin Black, which were sharper mysteries but the writing wasn't of this caliber.

THE VICTORIANS - A N Wilson

A fantastic over view of the UUK in the 19th century.  Not heavy history, very funny in places.  Wilson informs and entertains 

WHY THE ALLIES WON- Richard Overy

 

ANGLO-SAXON ENGLAND - Peter Hunter Blair

 

Very, very interesting, very readable.  I'm hampered by my total lack of British geographical knowledge, and to stop continually to see what areas the author was referring to, but worth the effort

SOMME Into The Breach - Hugh Sebag-Montefiore

One million casualties in four months, with no real winner.   One million human beings.

On the first day Haig remarked ' we only lost 40,000 men, not as bad as expected' -unbelievable.

The book itself is regiment by regiment and what they did across the front which is really for super history buffs, so for the casual reader like me it drags a wee bit.  But the excerpts from the diaries of the ordinary soldiers are heart breaking.

This history should be being taught as a lesson in not to listen to politicians.

 

1776- David McCullough

 

A surprisingly dull small history of the American War of Independence, when I say dull I mean dull for McCullough.

For me it just ambled along stating fairly well known information with no great insight or even opinion from the author.

I've read lots of McCullough's other work and been fascinated but this was just dull , in fact it has the feel of a book written to complete a contract.

A HISTORY OF BRITAIN 3000 BC -AD 1603 - Simon Schama

 

A very interesting read but a bit of a cheek stating its start at 3000 BC, the first 3000 years were written off in about 40 pages.

After that when proper records were kept things got interesting.  I assume there is a trick to remembering your Henrys from your Georges through the centuries but I don't know it so I stopped trying to remember which king was which and just enjoyed the ride.

THE BLETCHLEY GIRLS - Tessa Dunlop

 

A bit disappointing.  The book focus's on a group of women who were still alive around 2014, all of whom worked at Bletchley., all were in their 90's at the time of interview by the author.

The book consists of mini biographies of each of these ladies, all who were very clever and played an important war time role.

The negatives for me was the author referring to the women by their Christian names throughout, which got very confusing for my small brain and as stated above it is more biography regarding their childhoods' etc leading up to the war years.  Personally for me I wanted to know more of what they did at Bletchley rather than what they did on Saturday night.

 

AGENT ZIGZAG- Ben MacIntyre

 

You couldn't make the life of Eddie Chapman up, burglar, thief and super spy.

The only Englishman to be awarded the Iron Cross by Hitler, all the while working for British Intelligence.

I suppose today he would be called a sociopath but his bravery and efforts make for fascinating reading.

He was a man who lived a full life returning to his criminal ways after the war , living until he was 83 years old dying in 1997.