After hearing the above inspired injunction from Nacho Libre in 2006, I waited about 3 years, then finally sat down to read a real live book, like humans used to do. I really enjoyed it, but then I finished and I got busy doing all the really important stuff I'm always doing and didn't read anything else for a long time.
Then Val got me a great birthday present by getting me a subscription to Amazon's "Audible" audiobook service. (First book free, then 1 book credit per month at $15/mo.) The cheapskate in me had a hard time swallowing this recurring, monthly expense, but when I stop to think about how much it has done for my image (especially now that I wear glasses), the cost is easily worth it.
Before I provide some reviews of the books I've read, below are some points that are important to remember in the audiobook realm.
- When discussing these books with others, don't bother with specifying that you're technically listening to the book. Say things like, "When I read 'Atlas Shrugged' I thought John Galt was too into himself," or, "I'm currently reading 'The Scarlet Letter'. I can't believe how fanatical those people were."
- Narration is an art form. You'll be amazed at how adept some of these narrators are at keeping dozens of voices consistent throughout the narration, and how influential their tone and inflection can be with respect to the text. The good news is that by and large all of the narrators I've heard have been excellent. I almost feel bad that I don't get a chance to applaud them on their performances when the book is over. If you read books to your kids, you'll realize what a loser narrator you are.
- Resist the urge to increase the playback speed.
- This may not be the case for everyone but I find that I can focus just as well or better on audiobooks (even while multitasking; e.g. dishes, commuting, house chores) as I can on the written word.
I'll be rating all these books on the Netflix rating scale as follows:
1 star = hated it
2 stars = didn't like it
3 stars = liked it
4 stars = really liked it
5 stars = loved it
Angle of Repose - Wallace Stegner (5 stars)
This one I actually read (as in, real reading), like a sucker. This is one of those books that had a fairly profound impact on me. It masterfully weaves two story threads together, allowing for, what I'm sure in its day was a very clever & elegant narration style. A common theme I notice with Stegner is his ability to create high stakes out of things that are seemingly inconsequential by deeply focusing on the details and helping you get to know the characters and what matters to them. This is something I've been very into for the past few years -- the ability, in storytelling specifically, to put the mundane in a glorified light. It's a concept that is just so "human", and I think it speaks to our souls a little more deeply than the more fantastical stories sometimes can. As an example, a movie that spends 80% of its screen time showing the audience how a King worked to overcome a speech impediment and deliver a respectable speech.
This book helped me appreciate good imagery in writing, the romance of the western frontier, the challenges of marriage, of career, of life in general, and the value of family history.
And, as I understand it, Stegner wrote at least part of this book while living in the house my great grandfather built in Salt Lake City, and which my parents still own.
The Guns of August - Barbara Tuchman (John Lee) (3 stars)
"So GORGEOUS was the spectacle on the May morning of 1910 when nine kings rode in the funeral of Edward VII of England that the crowd, waiting in hushed and black-clad awe, could not keep back gasps of admiration. In scarlet and blue and green and purple, three by three the sovereigns rode through the palace gates, with plumed helmets, gold braid, crimson sashes, and jeweled orders flashing in the sun. After them came five heirs apparent, forty more imperial or royal highnesses, seven queens—four dowager and three regnant—and a scattering of special ambassadors from uncrowned countries. Together they represented seventy nations in the greatest assemblage of royalty and rank ever gathered in one place and, of its kind, the last. The muffled tongue of Big Ben tolled nine by the clock as the cortege left the palace, but on history’s clock it was sunset, and the sun of the old world was setting in a dying blaze of splendor never to be seen again."
No doubt this book is a masterpiece. An incredible feat of nonfiction storytelling about the first world war and the events that led up to it. I learned a lot about the kaiser, Churchill, the German mentality, the French, various countries' military tactics, etc. The only problem is that my base of WWI knowledge is probably insufficient to truly appreciate the absolute tome that is this book.
Liars Poker - Michael Lewis (5 stars)
The Big Short - Michael Lewis (Jesse Boggs) (5 stars)
Boomerang - Michael Lewis (Dylan Baker) (4 stars)
It's hard not to like Michael Lewis. After finishing his schooling he was hired to sell bonds for then top financial firm, Salomon Brothers. He had some decent success there, and probably could have staked out a decent career by sticking around in that industry. But he saw that the real story was the excesses and recklessness of his employer, and he left to write about it (Liars Poker), despite having no real background in journalism. 
His fresh, everyday-guy perspective he applies to his subject matter is part of what makes his books so enjoyable to read. His style is a bit like, "Hey, here's this thing that's happening right now that's crazy. Here are some of the reasons this thing is just wacky. Did you hear what I said? -- This is absolutely nuts." One example I recall from 'Boomerang' was when he detailed how Greece's federally funded railway problem is so completely messed up (laden with costly machinery, strikes, pensions, etc.) that it would actually cost the government less to abandon the entire mass transit system and pay everyone cash for their cab fare.
'Liars Poker' (1989) is largely about the excesses of Wall Street in the 80's. When the financial crisis truck in 2008, he was destined to be the voice of that calamity through writing, 'The Big Short' (2010). And then, almost as a corollary to that book, he also wrote 'Boomerang' (2011) which tells the story, not just of failing companies, but of failing countries. Coming Apart - Charles Murray (Traber Burns) (5 stars)
An excellent study on the growing chasm between the working class and the upper class that has slowly evolved in America over the last 50 years. To isolate his sample data, and, ironically, to avoid the appearance of racism, he filters to look at just white Americans in 1960 (census year) and white Americans in 2010. He brings to light some alarming trends that have evolved right under our noses in just the short span of one or two generations. He writes (and convincingly cites) that part of what has made America so great/special/successful is how it allows for citizens of all classes to be respected and heard, and share ideas and capital one with another, helping to enable the American dream. But he argues that this simply isn't true anymore, and it's becoming less true each year.
As a nice way of breaking up the dry, economics-heavy narrative, he administers a test in the book of 20-some questions for which the reader is awarded a certain amount of points depending on how he answers. The test is designed to help you decide how big of an upper class bubble you're living in. Questions like, when was the last time you ate at Ruby Tuesdays, Sizzler, or TGI Friday's, or, do you typically ache when you get home from work, or, when was the last time you went fishing. I'll admit that I thought with my church experiences and my general openness to talking to people from all walks of life that I would score pretty well (i.e. not be in a bubble) in the test. But I was squarely pegged as '2nd generation upper class.'
This book has helped to motivate me to think about steps I can actually take (where to live, how to be more open with all classes of people, how to not get caught up in the accumulation race, etc.) to improve the American situation as well as my own.
To Be Reviewed Later
A Tale of Two Cities - Charles Dickens (Simon Vance)
A Farewell to Arms - Ernest Hemingway (John Slattery)
1776 - David McCullough (David McCullough)
The Spectator Bird - Wallace Stegner (Edward Herrmann)
Macbeth - William Shakespeare (Joan Walker)
Crime & Punishment - Fyodor Dostoevsky (George Guidall)
Moby Dick - Herman Mellville (Frank Muller)
Green Hills of Africa - Ernest Hemingway (Josh Lucas)
A Hundred Years of Solitude - Gabriel Garcia Marquez (John Lee)
