Book Log 2018 #40: The Dante Chamber by Matthew Pearl

I was a big fan of The Dante Club (which I apparently read before logging books, or maybe I just forgot to log it), so I was looking forward to this sequel, which moves the action to London, where a number of murders tied into Dante lead to the fear that artist and writer Dante Gabriel Rossetti will be the next victim. A litany of English literary figures, from Rossetti's sister Christina to Browning and Tennyson are enlisted to find Rossetti and figure out who is committing these murders - and why.

I was somewhat disappointed in the book, though I have a hard time articulating why. It could be I found the first novel more to my interests (being set in the Boston area), or perhaps I set my expectations too high. In any case, it's not a bad book, and I do like Pearl's novels generally, so I do think it's worth a look. Just keep your expectations in check.

 Book Log 2018 #39: The Three Body Problem by Cixin Liu

This is the first book of a trilogy where we make first contact with an alien civilization, with the result that (spoiler alert) the aliens decide they want to invade Earth.  This is a very simple statement of the plot, which folds in a variety of historical, philosophical, and scientific detail. It's one of those books that I enjoyed even though I constantly felt like I was missing something.

Part of that might be due to the book being translated from Chinese. I also wonder if there's a cultural difference between Eastern and Western science fiction that might account for some of this. Of course, it could just be that the book was operating at a level above the amount of work I put in to reading it.

All that being said, if you're into science fiction it's very much worth reading.

So my younger son has been calling Columbus Day "Columbia Day," and while this seems to be a simple slip of the tongue (he still says "Orlando" whenever we see a licence place from Ontario, so he's a little malapropish), it did get me thinking. 

Columbus Day has been falling out of favor for years, especially as the impact of his trips on the native population become more well known. The rise in localities opting to celebrate Indigenous Peoples Day reflects this, and has led to an expected backlash from those who want to keep Columbus on the calendar.  Why not satisfy both sides and change the holiday to Columbia Day?

Columbia Day would be dedicated to celebrating the development of the United States and the contributions of all parties. It would recognize both native populations and the explorers who brought the New World into the orbit of the Old World. People would be free to tailor their own celebrations accordingly, though they would ideally reflect the varied and rich history of human history.

It's not a perfect solution, of course. Columbia was often used in the context of manifest destiny, which didn't go so well for native populations in the west. I could also see residents of the District of Columbia co-opting this day to highlight their lack of representation in Congress and further the push for statehood. Still, it would likely irritate partisans on both sides of the issue, which suggests it may not be that bad of an idea.

In any event, let me be the first (and only) person to wish you a happy Columbia Day today!

 Book Log 2018 #38: The Secret Dead by S. J. Parris

This is a short story prequel to the series featuring the former monk and amateur detective Giordano Bruno, set just as he's taking orders.  Restless on a hot summer night, Bruno goes for a walk and stumbles upon the illegal autopsy of a young woman. Bruno pokes his nose in, learns that there is something sinister about the woman's death - and potentially other deaths - and he has to decide between seeking justice or keeping his mouth shut and advancing his career. 

I liked this story just as much as I liked the novels, and would recommend seeking it out.

 Book Log 2018 #37: 12.21 by Dustin Thomason

When a smuggler brings a rare Mayan codex into the US, he also brings something else - a deadly disease that spreads quickly across southern California.  It's up to an expert in Mayan artifacts and local doctor to put a stop to the growing pandemic by deciphering the codex.

As you might have guessed, the story (and title) of this book is based on the "end of the world" scenario that was linked to the end of a cycle of the Mesoamerican Long Count calendar. The scenario was that the end of the cycle - on or around December 21, 2012 - there would be some sort of apocalyptic event or shift in the cosmos or something that would be bad news for us all. This wasn't something the Maya actually believed, but it sold a lot of merch so people just went with it.

The book is kind of meh. I had higher hopes for it as Thomason was one of the co-authors of The Rule of Four, which I really did like. You'd be better of reading (or re-reading) that book rather than taking on this one.

 Book Log 2018 #36: The Last Days of Night by Graham Moore

Thomas Edison and George Westinghouse engaged in one of the bigger industrial battles in US history, as they sought to gain the upper hand in electrifying America. This book tells that story, but through an unexpected character - young lawyer Paul Cravath, who Westinghouse hires to manage the various lawsuits Edison is using to try to put Westinghouse out of business.

Cravath is a real person, whose work for Westinghouse presaged his later law firm work representing several large corporations. He's also noteworthy for the system he developed to organize and run professional services, like law firms, which is still in use today. You see the beginnings of that here, which creates a kind of parallel story of invention. 

It's still a good book if all you're interested in is the fight between Edison and Westinghouse, but it's just that much more interesting when you throw in Cravath's story as well.

 Book Log 2018 #35: Foundation by Isaac Asimov

I'd been meaning to check this out for years, and when I finally got to it I was... underwhelmed? Not sure if that's actually it, but I did have an incredibly hard time getting into the book, and subsequently found it hard to keep the people and events straight. 

The book started out as a series of short stories, so perhaps there's a continuity issue that I couldn't quite overcome. It's probably worth taking another crack at. I did like the premise of the book - man discovers through a field of study he created that the Galactic Empire is failing, and the powers that be punish him for it - and have liked the other Asimov books I've read. The original trilogy won a Hugo Award for best all-time series, so I'm tempted to think the problem is with me. 

 Book Log 2018 #34: Exit Music by Ian Rankin

John Rebus is heading towards retirement, but in his usual way he doesn't get there easily. There are a couple of murders that appear to be tied to a visiting group of Russian businessmen, scouting out investment opportunities in Scotland. Rebus is convinced he can connect the killings to the Russians, gangster and nemesis Big Ger Cafferty, the Scottish National Party, and a local banker. It all seems too much, and as usual his investigative approach gets him suspended, but also as usual Rebus sticks with the investigation, looking for one last big solve.

With his retirement, there was thought this would be the last book in the series. It isn't. Even so, it would have been a fitting end to the series. But I'm glad it's not.

 Book Log 2018 #33: Waiting by Ha Jin

A doctor at a city hospital meets a nurse, they fall in love, and decide to get married. There is, of course, a catch. The doctor is already married, to a woman he does not love who is back in their home village, taking care of his elderly parents. He returns home for a few days each year, and when he does he tries to get a divorce. Even when his wife agrees to the divorce there are details that prevent it, and the doctor returns to the city, still unable to marry the woman he loves.

This is the main premise of the book, whose characters each experience this wait in different, and often surprising ways. The setting in communist China adds another layer to things, as all of the bureaucratic nonsense not only adds to each person's waiting, but has everyone, character and reader alike, waiting to see the changes in the country. 

I did like this book, but in case you couldn't guess it's not the best pick if you want a traditional romance. 

 Book Log 2018 #32: The Pilgrim of Hate by Ellis Peters

The victim in this installment of the Cadfael series is a knight who is a friend of our crime solving monk, which makes him even more motivated than usual to find the killer. Problem is this happens right around the feast for Saint Winifred, the patron saint of the abbey, so there are more suspects than usual. There's also the case of a young lame boy, whose desire for a miracle cure gets wrapped up in the case. 

It's pretty standard Cadfael fare, but as usual told well. 

 Book Log 2018 #31: The Code Book by Simon Singh

I remember having particularly meh feelings about this book, which looks at the history (and future) of cryptography, but I have no idea why. Did it not line up with what little I already knew about the subject? Did it repeat stories that I may not have considered historically accurate? Did its sections on the future get too fanciful? Or was I just in a mood? 

Can't say, so you might as well dip in and see if my ambivalence is justified. 

 Book Log 2018 #30: Munich by Robert Harris

Old friends from Oxford find themselves as junior members of their respective national delegations at the conference in Munich that led to the "peace in our time" agreement between the UK and Germany that, ultimately, did not prevent World War II. While they haven't seen each other in years, the two friends find themselves with very similar ideas as to whether or not this agreement is a good idea - and if there's something they can do to stop it. 

I enjoyed this book quite a bit, but then I tend to like Harris' novels in general. Certainly worth reading.

 Book Log 2018 #29: Fallout by Harry Turtledove

The Cold War has turned hot, as both the US and Soviet Union have turned to using nuclear weapons against each other and their allies in the hopes of claiming world dominance. Both sides look to use these new weapons to decapitate the leadership of the other, and where they fail internal politics may wind up succeeding.

I have mixed feelings about this book (and the series in general), mostly based the mixed feelings I have towards Turtledove's more recent work. I'm also not sure this series really depicts the sorts of horrors that would have been unleashed if the Cold War really did lead to this sot of actual war (though I say this with the caveat that it's been a while since I've read this book and could be underestimating how the war is being depicted).

Is it worth checking this series out? Hard to say. I've not been clamoring to read the final book, but at the same time writing this recap makes me want to get to it. I suppose I'm at the point with Turtledove that I'm at with Steve Berry. Not exactly hate reading, but not exactly real enjoyment either.

 Book Log 2018 #28: Head On by John Scalzi

Humans are infinitely adaptable in the face of change, as seen in this series where people who contract Hayden's Syndrome - which leaves people unable to use their bodies but keeps their minds intact - learn to interact with the world through robot-like machines (threeps). Not only do those affected adapt, but the wider world does as well, creating a variety of supports and social opportunities (as well as breeding some old-fashioned discrimination).

One of those adaptations is a sport where teams of threeps compete to remove the head of an opponent and carry it across a goal line, It's violent, popular, and generally harmless to the competitors as the damage is done to the machines. But when one of the athletes dies, it's up to FBI agent Chris Shane (himself a Hayden's sufferer) and his partner to figure out what happened. 

I like this series a lot, and appreciate the ways it makes you think about disability and difference while still keeping the story first.  I'm hopeful, and a little impatient, for more books in the series.

 Book Log 2018 #27: The Secret Life of Trees by Peter Wohlleben

We most often think of trees as solitary plants, living mutely among its fellow plants. Wohlleben, who spent 20 years working in Germany's forestry service, makes the case that this is far from the truth. Using recent scientific discoveries and his personal experience, he makes the case that trees are social and communal life forms, providing assistance to neighbors, communicating potential dangers, and helping to raise younger plants.

In some ways this book reminded me of Charles Mann's 1491, in the way it uses new information to dispel traditional - and often uninformed - ways of thinking about the given society (pre-Columbian in that book, arboreal in this one). I do find that this book drifts a little bit into more philosophical (some may say fanciful) notions of the interconnectedness of trees to other life forms - human included - but that doesn't take away from the more engrossing notions of how trees live. Where most people - myself included - don't really think about trees beyond having to rake leaves, this book challenges you to open up your thinking, which is never a bad thing.

 Book Log 2018 #26: Silesian Station by David Downing

As Europe lurches towards war, journalist John Russell finds himself being pulled ever deeper into the world of espionage. He agrees to work with American intelligence in return for citizenship, hoping it will protect him and his loved ones. It doesn't help; the Gestapo arrests his girlfriend, forcing him to use his Soviet connections to feed them disinformation. He agrees, but then also strikes a deal with the Soviets to work for them as well.

If that's not enough, Russell also investigates the disappearance of a girl shortly after arriving in Berlin, which only serves to put him in further danger.

I'll admit to being on the fence about this series a bit - it's good storytelling, but it's difficult to buy into the idea that Russell can be a triple agent without any of his masters deciding he's more trouble than he's worth. Still, I do think it's worth sticking with. The series is an interesting contrast to Alan Furst's Night Soldiers series, mostly in how they're structured (the more tightly connected books in Downing's series versus the looser connections in Night Soliders). 

 Book Log 2018 #25: Dead Man's Ransom by Ellis Peters

The English civil war rages on, and when the sheriff is taken prisoner, a swap is arranged for a young Welsh prisoner from the other side. The sheriff is brought to the Abbey of Saint Peter and Saint Paul, but is murdered before the swap is completed. Suspicion falls on the other prison, who just so happens to have fallen in love with the sheriff's daughter.

It's a pretty typical Cadfael plot, though the blurb I read about the book just now says that in helping the young prisoner Cadfael doesn't know that "the truth will be a trial for his own soul."  I didn't remember why that was, so I read a longer synopsis and, honestly, I don't think it's much of a trial. Cadfael has always been one to lean more towards natural justice than the law, and what goes down here fits that model.

 Book Log 2018 #24: The Naming of the Dead by Ian Rankin

The sixteenth Rebus novel moves between a murder of a rapist that may be the work of a serial killer and the death of a member of parliament that Rebus is getting waved off of as it may sully an important international meeting. You can imagine how Rebus takes that.

I was worried that the political aspect of the MP's murder would feel off, but it didn't. I do like it when Rebus bumps up against higher-level law enforcement and intelligence types. It would be weird if he was able to completely foil them, so the amount of success he does have seems realistic.

Book Log 2018 #23: Revolution for Dummies by Bassam Youssef

Bassam Youssef was a doctor in Egypt, and didn't see himself as being particularly political. All that changed during that country's uprising during the Arab Spring of 2011, when Youssef created and starred in a TV program that, much like The Daily Show and its cousins, used humor as a platform for critiquing the government and the ruling class.

Even with the changes that appeared to be in the air, doing this could get you into trouble. Youssef was charged with crimes, interrogated, and had his TV show shut down. Worried for his own safety, he fled Egypt.

These events (and more) are covered in this book, which provides both a personal history of the uprising and a look at how an authoritarianism survives, even when the people at the top change. It's an eye-opening book for those of us who live in a (somewhat) stable democracy, and who only saw the most basic coverage of what happened during the various Arab Spring protests.  It's also very funny, which makes it easy to see why the government wanted to shut him down. Bullies like nothing less than being laughed at.

Book Log 2018 #22: The Scarred Woman by Jussi Adler-Olsen

Carl Morck and his band of misfits in the Copenhagen police department's cold case division are fighting off claims that their office doesn't clear enough cases, an allegation which could close the unit down if unrefuted. 

Complicating their defense is that Rose, who has the best handle on the team's statistics, is still trying to recover from mental trauma with links to an event in her past. That event may also have links to the present in a more recent murder and a string of assaults against women, but linking them is proving difficult.

I've liked the entries in this series that delve into the lives of the supporting characters, and Rose's troubled past provides a lot of opportunity for doing so.