(And I'm still maintaining my lists at both Goodreads and Shelfari, FWIW.)
| Trickle Up Poverty | Michael Savage | 2010 |
| Anathem | Neal Stephenson | 2008 |
| Word Freak | Stefan Fatsis | 2001 |
| Stranger In A Strange Land | Robert A. Heinlein | 1961 |
| Foucault's Pendulum | Umberto Eco | 1988 |
| Complete Short Stories Of Ambrose Bierce, The | Ambrose Bierce | 1970 |
I'd easily put "Anathem" and "Word Freak" at the top and the last two at the bottom. Really, I was disappointed in the last three. I'd heard so many good things about them. "Stranger In a Strange Land" turned out to be long stretches of dialog that sounded like lectures on philosophy, religion (a lot of opinions on religion), and the meaning of life. Where's the sci or the fi? Or at least some good Martian stuff. Maybe "Foucault's Pendulum" was the wrong Eco book to start with, but I like a good conspiracy. However, it seemed like lengthy passages -- dozens or hundreds of pages? -- that just droned on about nothing. Maybe it's a problem of translation to English. And then Ambrose Bierce. I'm guessing his more than 90 stories were amazing and shocking in the late 19th century. They're grouped into three categories -- ghost stories, tall tales, and war stories. Most of the time it felt like there were only actually three different stories -- and sometimes it seemed like only one. I mean, a lot of the war stories were pretty much the same as the main ghost story template -- except they took place during the Civil War. And all those ghost stories seemed like pretty much the same story with different characters and places. Was I ever shocked that the person the main character was talking to turned out to have died in a town 50 miles away a couple weeks earlier? No. Not the first time. Not the twentieth time.
Wow, it's pretty easy to be critical, yes? Well, I loved the writing style of "Word Freak"; kind of like the lengthier articles in "Wired" or "The New Yorker". And I admire that kind of obsession. And "Anathem", well, Stephenson is one of my favorite authors, if I had to make a list. Yes, the first 50 pages were a struggle, what with, not only all the wacky alien names, but worse, all the made up words, which I'd think a story of an alien culture could do just fine without. But once I got over that hump, it was a thrilling adventure. This is how I like my science fiction, I guess. I suppose it, too, was full of the philosophizing, but it never felt as if I were reading a sleepy lecture, no offense to the esteemed Mr. Heinlein.
I guess I shouldn't mention all the others and leave out one book from the list. The mere fact that I read Michael Savage's book should tell you enough, and I don't want to start a political fight with the haters. Instead, I'd rather remind you to enjoy some Christmas Punch!
