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rmcl:

Bloodaxe -

You may enjoy "Legs," and "Billy Phelan's Greatest Game," also by William Kennedy.  Legs, about gangster Legs Diamond, is my favorite.

I grew up in the Hudson Valley, in and around those river towns, they are as beautiful and sad as portrayed in his novels.

Thank you. I will definitely check out some more books by William Kennedy in the future.

kmb117:

We don't have a cure for cancer but we've got 16 million different versions of the Lord of the Rings. What. The. Fuck.

JOSE SARAMAGO - Seeing

Hands down one of the best new (as in published recently) novels I have read in a long time. This is the first book by Saramago for me, but it will not be the last. The topic of Seeing is of current interest, as we in Europe will most likely be forced to accept the Lisbon Treaty without having a say in the matter. So, what is the book about then? It circles around a fictional town in Portugal (but most likely Saramago is referring to Lisbon!), and it's upcoming election. Everything turns out as it should until the votes are counted and the administration realizes that a majority (around 70%) of the population have voted for... nobody! Around 70% have used blank votes. So, what do you do? You hold another election of course, since the people voted "wrong" in the first one. Only, the second time around, over 80% of the population vote with blank votes.

As we all know by now, democracy in the western world has it's limitations, if the people decide that they want to change their government - the government almost always come to the conclusion that there is something wrong with people, not themselves. I shall not spoil the fun by telling you the plot, but the fictional government in the book take extreme measures to prove - not only that they are right, and the people are wrong - but also to find the person(s) responsible for this blunt attack on democracy. Obviously, the fact that people are thinking for themselves - Seeing, is not an option. There must be something, or somebody, behind this velvet coupe d'etat!

This book was written before the Lisbon Treaty debacle, and I think Saramago's point is to show that there is a huge chasm of distrust between our respective governments and the people in the western world. If our not so beloved leaders continue on this path, the damage will be damn near irreparable (if it isn't already), and the scenario above might just come true (just look at how many people in the U.S.A don't vote at all).

Saramago definitely has his own style of writing, and it took me a while to get over the threshold. Once the book got a hold of me however, it was hard to let go of. It is both funny and horrible, tense and humorous, and turns into quite the page turner at the end. If I had enough dough, I would buy a copy of this in every language possible and send it to the leaders of the world - they are the ones who really ought to read this, just as I know you will...

kmb117:

We don't have a cure for cancer but we've got 16 million different versions of the Lord of the Rings. What. The. Fuck.

Am halfway through "Understanding Power, " by Noam Chomsky - thanks, Iris - and have to keep putting it down - "Whew" - to chew on the many profundities and new ways of looking at things.

His understanding and use of language is incredible, life-alerting stuff, really.

To Live's to Fly : The Ballad Of The Late, Great Townes Van Zandt by John Kruth

A must read for any TVZ fan...or SE for that matter

Hey John From Bama!  My colleague was just telling me about the book, "Prosecuting George W. Bush for Murder"  last week.  Somehow I missed the piece you posted about it until now.  Anyway, the library doesn't have it yet...probably scared to buy it!  But Amazon has it for sale.  I think I have to read it.  

Anyway, just wanted to tell you that the author was on C-SPAN here last week or the week before.  Very articulate individual.  

Have a good night! 

CORNEL WEST - Democracy Matters. Winning The Fight Against Imperialism

One of the coolest persons on this planet (who, I am proud to admit, is also my friend) recommended that I read this book. I always take recommendations from said person seriously, and I am glad that I did read it. Cornel West is a professor at Princeton University (he was former at Harvard, but changed schools due to a rather heated quarrel with the president of Harvard, Lawrence Summers). He is also: a black American, a musician and a "non-Marxist socialist" (according to Wikipedia). This is the first time I read anything of the man, or even heard of him for that matter (thank you again D!).

The book is very insightful, but like always, when professors write books, the language can be rather challenging (especially for a white, working class autodidact from Sweden!). That is not necessarily bad, I added at least four new words to my vocabulary: myopic, indigenous, plutocracy and egregious (nooo... you will have to look them up for yourselves!).

During the first chapter, it felt like West was "preaching to the choir". Nothing really new came out of it, and I found myself simply nodding my head going, "Yeah, a-ha, mmm, I agree". Although it is indeed rewarding to read something that you already know and agree entirely with at times, it is not exactly expanding your intellect. But already in the second chapter ("Nihilism In America"), I started to get really interested. I still agreed, but West laid things out  - and put a "gut feeling" into words - in such a great way I was enthralled. From there on, it just got better and better. The best part of the book is the second chapter from the end, called "The Necessary Engagement With Youth Culture". I will take the liberty of writing down a rather lengthy quote from the chapter, it is well worth reading.

Cornel West:

[…] one of the most effective strategies of corporate marketeers has been to target the youth market with distractive amusement and saturate them with pleasurable sedatives that steer them away from engagement with issues of peace and justice. The incessant media bombardment of images (of salacious bodies and mindless violence) on TV and in movies and music convinces many young people that the culture of gratification-a quest for insatiable pleasure, endless tillitation, and sexual stimulation-is the only way of being human. Hedonistic values and narcissistic identities produce emotionally stunted young people unable to grow up and unwilling to be responsible democratic citizens. The market-driven media lead many young people to think that life is basically about material toys and social status. Democratic ideas of making the world more just, or striving to be a decent and compassionate person, are easily lost or overlooked

kmb117:

We don't have a cure for cancer but we've got 16 million different versions of the Lord of the Rings. What. The. Fuck.

I've just finished Vincent Bugliosi's "The Prosecution of George W. Bush for Murder".

Well, what can I say. Just read it. The dude's absolutely right. Once you get past the arrogance and the blinding patriotism, the man has a point. I'd LOVE to see the case happen, but I know it never will. I'd recommend that everyone in the United States read the book.
 

Just finished reading  "Power & Prospects: Reflections on human nature and the social order," by Noam Chomsky.

Not as readable as the previously recommended (by Iris) "Understanding Power, The Indispensable Chomsky," but enough to turn your head around, alter your world view once again.

Good stuff, one of that great thinkers of our time, who manages to challenge even the most deeply held assumptions most of us hold.  Don't agree with 100% of what he says, but how could you, he covers so much ground.  Come to think of it, I don't agree 100% with anybody.