G. D. P.

Outstanding!

Revisado: 02-26-25

Another Mosely masterpiece, brilliantly read by Michael Boatman. I can't recommend this audio book high enough.

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Loved it. Highly entertaining

Revisado: 03-16-24

I very much enjoyed this fascinating and surprisingly well-researched and well-written book about the movies Quentin Tarantino saw as a kid and which influenced him as an adult film-maker. I don't know why but I was quite surprised by the quality of his writing, which was very literate and showed him to be very well-read in addition to having seen a tremendous number of films. I must say I was delighted that he enjoyed three of my favorites--Bullitt, Rolling Thunder (especially William Devane), and Paradise Alley--and pretty much for the same reasons as I. The backgrounds of the films that influenced him, his personal story watching movies with his Mom and his Mom's friends around L.A., and the "inside baseball" on people like Steve McQueen and Tobe Hooper were endlessly interesting. And lastly, the final chapter on QT's house-mate as a teenager, Floyd Ray Wilson, was both poignant and probably the most hilarious thing I've every heard. The line about why you see a Marlon Brando movie vs. a Jim Brown movie just has to be heard! And since QT says he lost track of Mr. Wilson--and if the FindaGrave.com contributor is to be believed--he passed away 5 Dec 1991 and is buried at the Riverside National Cemetery.

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Surprisingly Interesting

Revisado: 08-11-23

My wife wanted to listen to this book while we were on a driving holiday, and I have to admit my expectations were not exactly great. But Spare turned out to be well written and quite interesting. Furthermore, it showed that two seemingly opposing cases can be true at the same time: Yes, the Duke is self-centered and complaining about his situation while living the life of fame and luxury. But he and his wife were also treated terribly by the same British tabloid press that hounded his mother to the point of causing her death. Plus, Harry served in the military for his country and risked his life in battle, so he's neither lazy nor dissolute. Another seeming contradiction is that the Royal Family and their minions appeared--in the Duke's telling--to be of no help to him or his wife. That may be the case but they also live their lives on the edge in that their continued positions and the long-term viability of the monarchy are at high risk of evaporating based on fickle public opinion shaped by the media. Anyway, Spare is worth a read or listen.

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Fascinating Man, Science, History, and Book

Revisado: 08-11-23

This book gets deeply into the brilliant Oppenheimer's complex personality, the history of physics, and the development of the atomic bomb. This book is not the one the recent movie was based on, From what I understand--I haven't read American Prometheus--A Life Inside the Center includes detailed explanations of the physics that led up to the development of the atomic bomb as well as a detailed telling of Oppenheimer's story and the world in which he lived, Oppenheimer's brilliance, charisma, weaknesses, and mistakes are covered thoroughly. He really was "the most interesting man in the world." I highly recommend this book for anyone interested in the interweaving of people, world events, and science.

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Excellent Follow-up to American Tabloid

Revisado: 08-11-23

This book is part two of a trilogy, beginning at around noon on November 22, 1963. This book continues the story of several fascinating police, mafia, FBI, CIA, and assorted oddballs involved in the JFK assassination and wide-scale crime (primarily in Las Vegas and Vietnam). As I wrote in my American Tabloid review, the book is violent, profane, and probably not for everyone, but I think it's another excellent piece of work by Ellroy.

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Five Alarm Fire

Revisado: 08-11-23

Ellroy is one of my favorite crime novelists. This book is a really violent, profane, fascinating novel about the JFK assassination, Cuba, the Mafia, J Edgar Hoover, Howard Hughes, Jimmy Hoffa, the Kennedy family, the CIA, and on and on. The story ends at noon Dallas time on 11.22.1963. It's part 1 of a trilogy; I've also read the second book (The Cold Six Thousand), which starts at noon on 11.22.1963 and is focused on the assassination aftermath and Howard Hughes, the Mafia, and Las Vegas. I will definitely read the final book in the series.

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Very Interesting

Revisado: 08-11-23

This is a very interesting series of articles on people involved in human death on a day-to-day basis. I found it well-written and very educational. I have recommended it to several of my friends.

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One of the Best Novels I've Ever Read

Revisado: 08-11-23

This is my second time reading (or listening) to "The Name of the Rose." The translation of Eco's writing is both elegant and thought-provoking, making this book not just an exciting detective story but also a deep exploration of history, faith, and people.

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Great Performance of Juvenile Writing

Revisado: 09-24-22

I listened to most of The Langoliers before returning this audio book. Willem Dafoe's performance was of course excellent, but the writing was dreadful: endless similes, pop culture references, and over-written sections about tangential topics not pertinent to or informative about the characters or story. King's 11/22/63 is one of my all-time favorite books, but the first story (that's all I could take) in this collection was rubbish.

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Stunning

Revisado: 07-10-22

I had no idea that white supremacy (defined in this book as a belief that whites have more value than nonwhites) was so deeply embedded in American Christianity, and especially in Evangelical Protestant and Baptist communities. But it makes sense that 19th century southerners--including clerics and church administrators--would fight to retain the status quo (slavery) when the abolition movement and Civil War occurred, twisting the words of the Bible to support their white supremacist positions. For example, stating that the last line of Genesis 4:15 (And the LORD said unto him, Therefore whosoever slayeth Cain, vengeance shall be taken on him sevenfold. And the LORD set a mark upon Cain, lest any finding him should kill him) was the origin of dark skin. So African Americans could be thought of as descendants of the man who killed his brother and tried to deceive God, therefore deserving of less in their lives.

Following the loss by the southern states in the Civil War, the church also promoted and reinforced a fatalistic belief that the second coming of Jesus would set things right (“the South will rise again”). This then gave white Christian southerners and some northerners permission not to take responsibility for the loss of the war, as well as for societal ills. Today, this is manifested in unwillingness to do anything about social justice, health care, education, or climate change.

Yet another example of white Christians striving to retain their superiority described in “White Too Long” was the Colfax Massacre of 1873. White Louisianans including KKK and other white supremacist groups attacked a courthouse defended by recently freed slaves (who had the temerity to vote) in order to overturn the Louisiana election of 1872. 150 African Americans were killed, including 48 who were murdered after the battle, and tributes went up in the south to the 3 whites who died while “putting down a riot.”

I will never again wonder how white Christians can ignore the teachings of Jesus in their beliefs about guns, immigration, voter suppression, and their non-white and LGBTQ brothers and sisters.

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