The latest book I finished is How the Irish Saved Civilization by Thomas Cahill, the first in a series he is calling "The Hinges of History".
How the Irish Saved Civilization, or HISC for short, is a well-written and engaging book but short on actual meat to back the argument. The synopsis is that after the fall of Rome, the monks in Ireland were an important group that preserved and copied a lot of classical manuscripts, allowing them to survive and to influence the societies that would follow.
There is not much argument in the book beyond that simple statement. In fact, the first 2/3rds of the book don't even get to this thesis - instead it describes what was at risk of being lost in the civilization of the Roman world, what the Celtic culture was like in Ireland before Patrick converted the island and how Patrick and the Irish monks that followed him converted Ireland and created a variant version of Catholicism that lasted until the Roman version spread to Ireland through Europe.
The section of the book dealing with the actual thesis is quite short and doesn't really give a lot of evidence or theories relating to the thesis. It just restates it and moves quickly to the close of the book.
Thursday, March 13, 2008
Monday, March 10, 2008
Yesterday I finished The Well of Lost Plots, the third Thursday Next novel by Jasper Fforde.
The Thursday Next novels postulate a world where books are actually parallel worlds, inhabited by real characters who can travel from book to book and have lives of their own when they are not being read. In some ways, the idea is similar to what was used in Gary Wolf's Who Censored Roger Rabbit or in the film A Purple Rose in Cairo but more thoroughly developed and explored. Fforde also uses it as an excuse to engage in meta-fiction tricks like having the characters in the book aware of footnotes or mis-spellings.
My reaction to The Well of Lost Plots was similar to my reaction to the first two books - at first I was bit put off by the over-cute meta-fiction tricks and references to different books/characters sprinkled liberally throughtout but by the end of the book it had won me over and I quite enjoyed it.
The Thursday Next novels postulate a world where books are actually parallel worlds, inhabited by real characters who can travel from book to book and have lives of their own when they are not being read. In some ways, the idea is similar to what was used in Gary Wolf's Who Censored Roger Rabbit or in the film A Purple Rose in Cairo but more thoroughly developed and explored. Fforde also uses it as an excuse to engage in meta-fiction tricks like having the characters in the book aware of footnotes or mis-spellings.
My reaction to The Well of Lost Plots was similar to my reaction to the first two books - at first I was bit put off by the over-cute meta-fiction tricks and references to different books/characters sprinkled liberally throughtout but by the end of the book it had won me over and I quite enjoyed it.
Sunday, March 09, 2008
Last night, we saw Keith Jarrett, Gary Peacock and Jack DeJohnette as part of the SF Jazz summer season.
They make up one of the best piano trio's in jazz and put on a really good show of standards.
The only less than perfect part of the night was the slumped over guy who had vomited on the floor on the BART ride home.
They make up one of the best piano trio's in jazz and put on a really good show of standards.
The only less than perfect part of the night was the slumped over guy who had vomited on the floor on the BART ride home.
Friday, March 07, 2008
Today, I finished re-reading The Dain Curse by Dashiell Hammett, one of his six novels, and one of two to feature his nameless detective - the "Continental Op".
I've always admired The Dain Curse for it's twisted plot, as the Continental Op starts out investigating a simple diamond theft and then gets pulled into family mysteries and a number of murders. It's not as good as the first, and much, much bloodier and hard-boiled, Continental Op book Red Harvest, but if you want to see the start of the modern private detective genre, you can't go wrong with Hammett.
I've always admired The Dain Curse for it's twisted plot, as the Continental Op starts out investigating a simple diamond theft and then gets pulled into family mysteries and a number of murders. It's not as good as the first, and much, much bloodier and hard-boiled, Continental Op book Red Harvest, but if you want to see the start of the modern private detective genre, you can't go wrong with Hammett.
Monday, March 03, 2008
Over the weekend, I finished Paladin of Souls by Lois McMaster Bujold.
This is the 2nd book of three set in the same world as The Curse of Chalion. I wrote about the third book, The Hallowed Hunt, here. Paladin of Souls is a sequel to The Curse of Chalion, but not a direct continuation. It functions as a stand alone novel with different main characters while still continuing the story from the first novel.
It's quite a good book but overrated. I liked the first book in the series better but this one won the Hugo and Nebula awards for best novel and the Locus Awards for best fantasy novel in the year it came out. I've read all of the Hugo nominees for that year and I would probably have put this book 3rd or 4th out of that list.
Bujold has an ability to create compelling characters that makes all of her books enjoyable but I didn't find anything particularly noteworthy or outstanding in this particular one.
This is the 2nd book of three set in the same world as The Curse of Chalion. I wrote about the third book, The Hallowed Hunt, here. Paladin of Souls is a sequel to The Curse of Chalion, but not a direct continuation. It functions as a stand alone novel with different main characters while still continuing the story from the first novel.
It's quite a good book but overrated. I liked the first book in the series better but this one won the Hugo and Nebula awards for best novel and the Locus Awards for best fantasy novel in the year it came out. I've read all of the Hugo nominees for that year and I would probably have put this book 3rd or 4th out of that list.
Bujold has an ability to create compelling characters that makes all of her books enjoyable but I didn't find anything particularly noteworthy or outstanding in this particular one.
Wednesday, February 27, 2008
A few days ago I finished Rocketeers by Michael Belfiore.
Subtitled "How a Visionary Band of Business Leaders, Engineers, and Pilots Is Boldly Privatizing Space", Rocketeers is a chronicle of the first few years of a new industry, sometimes referred to as NewSpace or Alt.Space, that is trying to revolutionize access to space through entrepreneurial means rather than government action.
Belfiore interviewed a number of the most important people in this new field, including people at Burt Rutan's Scaled Composites, Bigelow Aerospace, RocketPlane Kistler and SpaceX. He does a good job of covering the people he interviews, but a little more information on some of the other companies would have been interesting.
There are two flaws in this book. The first is that it is very early in the development of this industry and therefore the real prospects of these companies are far from certain. In particular, the last year has seen a lot of setbacks, from the explosion at Scaled Composite's test site that killed three employees, to Rocketplane Kistler losing their NASA COTS funding and there being no winner of the Lunar Lander challenge at the X prize cup after two years with only one competitor - Armadillo Aerospace. The second is that Belfiore falls into common cliche in non-fiction books - he injects himself into the story. For example, his reaction to finding about the Apollo moon landings in the start of the book is neither germane to the story, nor interesting, to read about. Similarly, his reaction to the Doom computer game in the small section on John Carmack and Armadillo Aerospace is just a distraction.
Subtitled "How a Visionary Band of Business Leaders, Engineers, and Pilots Is Boldly Privatizing Space", Rocketeers is a chronicle of the first few years of a new industry, sometimes referred to as NewSpace or Alt.Space, that is trying to revolutionize access to space through entrepreneurial means rather than government action.
Belfiore interviewed a number of the most important people in this new field, including people at Burt Rutan's Scaled Composites, Bigelow Aerospace, RocketPlane Kistler and SpaceX. He does a good job of covering the people he interviews, but a little more information on some of the other companies would have been interesting.
There are two flaws in this book. The first is that it is very early in the development of this industry and therefore the real prospects of these companies are far from certain. In particular, the last year has seen a lot of setbacks, from the explosion at Scaled Composite's test site that killed three employees, to Rocketplane Kistler losing their NASA COTS funding and there being no winner of the Lunar Lander challenge at the X prize cup after two years with only one competitor - Armadillo Aerospace. The second is that Belfiore falls into common cliche in non-fiction books - he injects himself into the story. For example, his reaction to finding about the Apollo moon landings in the start of the book is neither germane to the story, nor interesting, to read about. Similarly, his reaction to the Doom computer game in the small section on John Carmack and Armadillo Aerospace is just a distraction.
Last night we went to an Ask A Scientist event at the Axis Cafe in San Francisco. The Ask A Scientist lectures are the SF version of what have come to be called "science cafes", where a lecture is given to the public on some scientific topic in an informal, Q&A atmosphere. The topic last night was ancient science and the lecture was given by Richard Carrier, who is just about to complete a Ph.D with a related thesis.
It was a very interesting and entertaining lecture. The lecturer was obviously an expert in the field and there were a number of good questions from the audience. It was also good that he started off with a brief discourse on what seperates ancient science from modern science.
It was a very interesting and entertaining lecture. The lecturer was obviously an expert in the field and there were a number of good questions from the audience. It was also good that he started off with a brief discourse on what seperates ancient science from modern science.
Sunday, February 24, 2008
Yesterday morning I finished The Hallowed Hunt by Lois McMaster Bujold - a stand alone fantasy novel set in the same world as The Curse of Chalion and Paladin of Souls.
I've read The Curse of Chalion but not Paladin of Souls, though it is on my shelf right now. Chalion is quite a good book, and Paladin won both the Hugo and the Nebula awards so it is probably good as well. The Hallowed Hunt is a good book but I didn't like it as much as Chalion and it didn't seem good enough to win any awards. Bujold has a good handle on writing interesting characters and she has created a unique world with a religion that stands out as more interesting than most fantasy books. She also deserves praise for avoiding the trap of writing endless series of books. All three of these books are set in the same world but stand alone without any cliffhangers at the end.
I've read The Curse of Chalion but not Paladin of Souls, though it is on my shelf right now. Chalion is quite a good book, and Paladin won both the Hugo and the Nebula awards so it is probably good as well. The Hallowed Hunt is a good book but I didn't like it as much as Chalion and it didn't seem good enough to win any awards. Bujold has a good handle on writing interesting characters and she has created a unique world with a religion that stands out as more interesting than most fantasy books. She also deserves praise for avoiding the trap of writing endless series of books. All three of these books are set in the same world but stand alone without any cliffhangers at the end.
Last night we saw the Punch Brothers, Chris Thile's post-modern bluegrass band (formerly known as the Tension Mountain Boys and How To Grow A Band) at the Independent in San Francisco.
We saw the same band almost exactly a year ago at the same club. I wrote about it here. Last night's performance was also an amazing show by some of the best pickers alive today, but I enjoyed it less than last year. A large portion of the show was devoted to what Thile describes as a string quintette for bluegrass instruments, "The Blind Leading the Blind". It's an interesting, ambitious piece and particularly praiseworthy in our current anti-intellectual, anti-art pop culture but it serves as more of a showcase of Thile's composing talents. Thile is probably the best mandolin player of all time and has an amazing creativity in his improvisations, as well as an amazing ability to improvise at extreme high speed. That is what I really like to see from his live shows and it was mostly lacking last night.
It was still a great show but hopefully after this tour, his live show will feature more of his hot picking and improvising.
We saw the same band almost exactly a year ago at the same club. I wrote about it here. Last night's performance was also an amazing show by some of the best pickers alive today, but I enjoyed it less than last year. A large portion of the show was devoted to what Thile describes as a string quintette for bluegrass instruments, "The Blind Leading the Blind". It's an interesting, ambitious piece and particularly praiseworthy in our current anti-intellectual, anti-art pop culture but it serves as more of a showcase of Thile's composing talents. Thile is probably the best mandolin player of all time and has an amazing creativity in his improvisations, as well as an amazing ability to improvise at extreme high speed. That is what I really like to see from his live shows and it was mostly lacking last night.
It was still a great show but hopefully after this tour, his live show will feature more of his hot picking and improvising.
Thursday, February 21, 2008
Over the weekend, I finished On The Wealth of Nations by P.J. O'Rourke, a book about explaining Adam Smith's magnum opus.
O'Rourke is one of my favourite comedy authors, particularly his early works like Republican Party Reptile, but this isn't one of his strongest books. His usually humorous asides feel like more of a distraction, and he particularly gets off track in the first few chapters which seem to be only tangentially about Adam Smith's book.
I learned a few new things about The Wealth of Nations, but I think this book is too much of a mutt and not enough of an explanation or enough of straight comedy.
O'Rourke is one of my favourite comedy authors, particularly his early works like Republican Party Reptile, but this isn't one of his strongest books. His usually humorous asides feel like more of a distraction, and he particularly gets off track in the first few chapters which seem to be only tangentially about Adam Smith's book.
I learned a few new things about The Wealth of Nations, but I think this book is too much of a mutt and not enough of an explanation or enough of straight comedy.
Wednesday, February 20, 2008
I just finished Death of the Duchess by Elizabeth Eyre, a mediocre mystery set in Renaissance Italy.
The characters are OK but the mystery is a little lackluster and the author (really 2 authors under a pen name) don't really take advantage of the setting. Other than being told it is Renaissance Italy, there is not much that clearly points to that setting in the story. It could as easily been almost anywhere where nobility existed, before the 20th century.
The characters are OK but the mystery is a little lackluster and the author (really 2 authors under a pen name) don't really take advantage of the setting. Other than being told it is Renaissance Italy, there is not much that clearly points to that setting in the story. It could as easily been almost anywhere where nobility existed, before the 20th century.
Monday, February 18, 2008
Saturday, February 16, 2008
Last night I finished Pattern Recognition by William Gibson. Gibson is best known for his cyberpunk trilogy, Neuromancer, Count Zero and Mona Lisa Overdrive but in recent years he has moved away from science fiction. Pattern Recognition is set in a the modern world, but at the same time feels fantastical.
The plot is a little difficult to describe but the main character is a consultant and "cool hunter" who gets involved in investigating some mysterious footage that is posted to the web. After his early novels, I felt that Gibson lost his way somewhat while trying to recapture some of cutting edge feeling of his early books and then in trying to get away from the cyberpunk genre he had created. In his newer books, he is finally successful at creating something separate and also interesting.
The plot is a little difficult to describe but the main character is a consultant and "cool hunter" who gets involved in investigating some mysterious footage that is posted to the web. After his early novels, I felt that Gibson lost his way somewhat while trying to recapture some of cutting edge feeling of his early books and then in trying to get away from the cyberpunk genre he had created. In his newer books, he is finally successful at creating something separate and also interesting.
Monday, February 11, 2008
I just finished Legacy of Ashes by Tim Weiner, an interesting, but depressing, history of the CIA.
Before reading this book, I expected to read about a lot of illegal, and probably immoral, things the CIA had done. What I didn't expect was the incompetence that existed right from the start of the CIA. Right from the start, the CIA ignored it's mandate to deliver quality intelligence for the president to focus on covert operations of little strategic value. On top of that, president after president, both Democrat and Republican, has abused the CIA in order to further their own political ends.
I'd be curious to see how the CIA's string of failures and lapses compares with other intelligence agencies, like the UK's MI6 or the Soviet KGB, to see if some of these problems are endemic to the intelligence community or if they are uniquely American.
Before reading this book, I expected to read about a lot of illegal, and probably immoral, things the CIA had done. What I didn't expect was the incompetence that existed right from the start of the CIA. Right from the start, the CIA ignored it's mandate to deliver quality intelligence for the president to focus on covert operations of little strategic value. On top of that, president after president, both Democrat and Republican, has abused the CIA in order to further their own political ends.
I'd be curious to see how the CIA's string of failures and lapses compares with other intelligence agencies, like the UK's MI6 or the Soviet KGB, to see if some of these problems are endemic to the intelligence community or if they are uniquely American.
Tuesday, February 05, 2008
I finished The Rule of Four by Ian Caldwell and Dustin Thomason a while ago but forgot to hit the post button. Oops.
The quotes and reviews make this book out to be something like The DaVinci Code only more intelligent, but I think that is misleading. The Rule of Four isn't really a standard thriller at all. There is a historical mystery (based on a real mysterious book called the Hypnerotomachi Poliphili whose author has only been tentatively identified based on an acrostic in the text) but that, along with the Princeton campus, is really just part of the context of the book. It's really more a story of friendship and a classic "coming of age" story. Recommended, but not for people looking for thrillers like the DaVinci Code.
The quotes and reviews make this book out to be something like The DaVinci Code only more intelligent, but I think that is misleading. The Rule of Four isn't really a standard thriller at all. There is a historical mystery (based on a real mysterious book called the Hypnerotomachi Poliphili whose author has only been tentatively identified based on an acrostic in the text) but that, along with the Princeton campus, is really just part of the context of the book. It's really more a story of friendship and a classic "coming of age" story. Recommended, but not for people looking for thrillers like the DaVinci Code.
Last night I went to the Freight and Salvage to see a show by three bands put on by the San Francisco Bluegrass and Old Time Festival (aka SFBOT).
The first band was an SF band, Homespun Rowdy. I've seen the Rowdies play at a number of different venues over the year and I didn't used to like their performances very much. In the early days of the band, it seemed like they were going for more of a county rather than bluegrass sound. Happily for me, either they have changed or my taste has evolved because now I like them a lot. They put on a good show of bluegrass done in a mostly traditional style and they've achieved one of the toughest things in bluegrass - a strong and tight band rhythm.
The second band was Spring Creek, from Lyons, Colorado. They were better than I thought they were going to be, based on listening to some song samples on their website, but they were the weakest band of the evening. They obviously have some talented pickers in the band but it felt like they never got into a good groove and their singing is more country than bluegrass. Also, they don't have a fiddle player which is a huge strike against them in my book.
The last band was Town Mountain from Asheville, North Carolina, with local fiddle hotshot Annie Staninec sitting in. I really liked this band. They play mostly originals, and some with a more country feel, but they have my favourite type of band rhythm/sound - hard driving, high energy and a little rough around the edges. They put on an excellent show and showcased some great songs and excellent picking. Highly recommended and I will definitely see them again if they come back to this area.
The first band was an SF band, Homespun Rowdy. I've seen the Rowdies play at a number of different venues over the year and I didn't used to like their performances very much. In the early days of the band, it seemed like they were going for more of a county rather than bluegrass sound. Happily for me, either they have changed or my taste has evolved because now I like them a lot. They put on a good show of bluegrass done in a mostly traditional style and they've achieved one of the toughest things in bluegrass - a strong and tight band rhythm.
The second band was Spring Creek, from Lyons, Colorado. They were better than I thought they were going to be, based on listening to some song samples on their website, but they were the weakest band of the evening. They obviously have some talented pickers in the band but it felt like they never got into a good groove and their singing is more country than bluegrass. Also, they don't have a fiddle player which is a huge strike against them in my book.
The last band was Town Mountain from Asheville, North Carolina, with local fiddle hotshot Annie Staninec sitting in. I really liked this band. They play mostly originals, and some with a more country feel, but they have my favourite type of band rhythm/sound - hard driving, high energy and a little rough around the edges. They put on an excellent show and showcased some great songs and excellent picking. Highly recommended and I will definitely see them again if they come back to this area.
Friday, February 01, 2008
Last night I finished Making Money, the latest Discworld novel by Terry Pratchett.
Pratchett likes to introduce new characters every few novels and then use them as the main character for a number of books. For example, there are the Rincewind books, the Death books, the Sam Vimes/City Watch books, etc.
Making Magic is the second book to feature Moist von Lipwig, the ex-crook who became head of the Ankh-Morpork Post Office in Going Postal. This book has him getting involved in the banking system and the inevitable shenanigans that follow.
It's a pretty good book - Lipwig is an interesting character and interacts well with some of Pratchett's other standard characters, particularly Lord Vetinari. Some parts of the book felt sloppier and less clearly written than other Discworld novels. I'm not sure if that is actually the case or if I'm just projecting because I know that Pratchett has been recently diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer's.
Pratchett likes to introduce new characters every few novels and then use them as the main character for a number of books. For example, there are the Rincewind books, the Death books, the Sam Vimes/City Watch books, etc.
Making Magic is the second book to feature Moist von Lipwig, the ex-crook who became head of the Ankh-Morpork Post Office in Going Postal. This book has him getting involved in the banking system and the inevitable shenanigans that follow.
It's a pretty good book - Lipwig is an interesting character and interacts well with some of Pratchett's other standard characters, particularly Lord Vetinari. Some parts of the book felt sloppier and less clearly written than other Discworld novels. I'm not sure if that is actually the case or if I'm just projecting because I know that Pratchett has been recently diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer's.
Monday, January 28, 2008
Sunday, January 27, 2008
Yesterday, I finished Devices and Desires by K.J. Parker, the first book in a fantasy trilogy.
The interesting thing about this fantasy trilogy is that while the main setting is a fairly standard pastoral/medieval country, the plot of the book has to do with the clash between that country and another country that is more industrialized, more similar to a late Renaissance city or even early Industrial Revolution city, but without gunpowder. This gives enough of a twist to the story to make it a little more interesting than a standard fantasy. The characters are well written as well.
Like many fantasy books, it does give to much credit to the medieval lifestyle, and the medieval nobility, compared to an industrial lifestyle. The industrial city is quite an exaggeration, with rigid guilds and rules that dominate all of city life, but it's still an interesting twist and overall, well handled.
The interesting thing about this fantasy trilogy is that while the main setting is a fairly standard pastoral/medieval country, the plot of the book has to do with the clash between that country and another country that is more industrialized, more similar to a late Renaissance city or even early Industrial Revolution city, but without gunpowder. This gives enough of a twist to the story to make it a little more interesting than a standard fantasy. The characters are well written as well.
Like many fantasy books, it does give to much credit to the medieval lifestyle, and the medieval nobility, compared to an industrial lifestyle. The industrial city is quite an exaggeration, with rigid guilds and rules that dominate all of city life, but it's still an interesting twist and overall, well handled.
Sunday, January 20, 2008
I just finished the Trouble with Physics by Lee Smolin.
The titular trouble Smolin is referring to is the lack of progress in fundamental physics since the standard model was put together in the 1970s. In particular, he looks in detail at string theory and postulates that it has been a dead end, and the sociology surrounding it impeding progress on other possibly productive areas.
This book is quite good. I especially liked the sections of the book that summarize the progress in physics between the starts of the relativity and quantum revolutions and the development of the final model. I was familiar with the development of relativity and quantum theory, and their extensions in quantum electrodynamics but I had only heard of more modern advances like gauge theory. This book gives a good popular science level explanation of the more modern developments.
It also gives a good description of the development of string theory, and the best explanation I've seen of why string theory was originally seen as being so promising and why so many people have become convinced that it is the right path to follow.
Highly recommended for readers interested in modern physics. I'd recommend that any readers have at least a popular science level understanding of relativity and basic quantum mechanics before reading this book.
Amazon Link:
The titular trouble Smolin is referring to is the lack of progress in fundamental physics since the standard model was put together in the 1970s. In particular, he looks in detail at string theory and postulates that it has been a dead end, and the sociology surrounding it impeding progress on other possibly productive areas.
This book is quite good. I especially liked the sections of the book that summarize the progress in physics between the starts of the relativity and quantum revolutions and the development of the final model. I was familiar with the development of relativity and quantum theory, and their extensions in quantum electrodynamics but I had only heard of more modern advances like gauge theory. This book gives a good popular science level explanation of the more modern developments.
It also gives a good description of the development of string theory, and the best explanation I've seen of why string theory was originally seen as being so promising and why so many people have become convinced that it is the right path to follow.
Highly recommended for readers interested in modern physics. I'd recommend that any readers have at least a popular science level understanding of relativity and basic quantum mechanics before reading this book.
Amazon Link:
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