What Book Are You Currently Reading ?

[El Kabong]

'Kitchen Confidential' - Anthony Bourdain


Bourdain was an interesting guy and I'm somewhat sad he's not around anymore. His book is what I figured it would be, it's debauched, erratic, loving, hating, glamorizing and shocking about the food service industry at the highest level. Some of what he writes are universal truths to the industry others are specific only to the highest levels of the craft. It is a fun read so far.

[Master]

Reading one of Roy Kean’s autobiographies, I do not ordinarily read footballers books but have always admired him as a footballer, which was about the end of his career and management. He had a physical fight with Peter Schmeichel where he gave him a black eye. He was let go by Utd because he criticised the players for their 4-1 loss to Middleborough on their in-house channel.

He could have gone to Everton, Real Madrid but chose Celtic as his boyhood club. His management stories were boring but he got Sunderland promoted, messed up Ipswich and did some punditry which he does not enjoy.

[El Kabong]

Just finished up 'Ball of Collusion' by Andrew McCarthy. Ok book, not much new information for me

[El Kabong]

Just started 'Devil in The White City' by Erik Larson so far so good, intriguing from the get go!

[Gandalf]

I have just finished Hannibal Rising which was my first fiction in a while. Next is Douglas Murray's new one. Something about about crowds and how bonkers they are which is one reason I tend to avoid large groups of mentally ill people. One Hannibal is fine, but a crowd of Sociology majors in masks is best avoided.

[Alpha]

Reading this again:

Green Book Book by Muammar al-Gaddafi. I would encourage people to read it.

[El Kabong]

Just started 'Devil in The White City' by Erik Larson so far so good, intriguing from the get go!

So just to let people know the premise the book is about Chicago's 1893 World's Fair, the architects who built the White City namely Daniel Burnham and Francis Davis Millet ; mentally ill Patrick Eugene Prendergast who was to become the assassin of Chicago's Mayor Carter Harrison Sr. at his home right after the fair; and H.H. Holmes America's first notable serial killer, vicious that one.

[Alpha]

Started this again: What Soldiers Do: Sex and the American GI in World War II France.

[El Kabong]

I'm currently in the middle of David La Vere's 'The Tuscarora War: Indians, Settlers, and the fight for the Carolina colonies.

It's really well done. It wastes no time on SJW lamentations looking at history through the prism of today. It's straightforward, it provides definite answers when able and plausible hypotheses otherwise. I'm finding that the culture clash between Indians and Settlers the most intriguing. Indians were very cagey and shrewd in their trade practices and they were very open to people of other cultures marrying their women and surprisingly some big wig colonizers were cool with this as well. Their idea being that it would be the only way to bring the Indians into a more European society, get them apprenticeships etc.

Another interesting aspect is the naivety on display by both Indians and Settlers. The Indians belief that they could raid villages and massacre people and that the Settlers would just come to the understanding that "Oh, well the Indians are in control. We better mind our p's and q's" instead of responding in kind. And the Settlers who would too often treat Indians very poorly and then when attacked get all "Well what the hell did we do to deserve this?" ....in the hindsight of some 300 years I'm sure this is much more amusing than when things were actually going down.