Each photo includes a brief caption (printed too small and in a hard-to-read gray - but really, the only flaw in an otherwise perfect book, and including such gems as "highland guides entertained by the fact they were about to shoot their arrows within centimetres of my head as a joke") and map showing where it was taken. And while the text is minimal, the visuals are stunning enough to send me to Google to look up the differencce between Huli wigmen and Asaro mudmen, as well as Melanesia, Polynesia and Micronesia.*
As this was printed in Australia, I have no idea how it ended up in a used book store in Virginia, (indeed, this wasn't even listed on Goodreads, so had to add it myself) - but good news for my Down Unda friends who may be able to find it locally. (You can also see more of Kirkland's work at www.kirklandphotos.com.)
* So Melanesia is basically PNG, Fiji and Vanuatu; Polynesia is the more easterly islands of Hawaii, Samoa, Easter Island and (oddly, at least to me) New Zealand; and Micronesia contains the scattered smaller islands of Palau, Nauru and the Marshalls (hence the "micro")....more
Not merely "everything you could ever want to know about flags, but indeed "way more than you could every want…;" but that's a good thing for we oddbaNot merely "everything you could ever want to know about flags, but indeed "way more than you could every want…;" but that's a good thing for we oddball followers of flags/stamps/coins/banknotes/etc.* Aside from the obligatory "flags of the world" section (which takes up nearly half the book, and includes all sorts of "I never knew that" detail on how each flag came to be), there are sections on the origins and history of flags; military flags/banners; flag "families;" etc. Interesting if not riveting stuff, best read…I dunno, one chapter or half a dozen countries every other month?
* I also learned that the study of the history, symbolism and usage of flags is called vexillilogy. Who knew?? _____________________________________________
(Another under $3 find at McKay Used Books in Manassas)...more
While previous editions of this book were already excellent, this 2020 revised edition is even better, as it came out shortly after the major, multi-yWhile previous editions of this book were already excellent, this 2020 revised edition is even better, as it came out shortly after the major, multi-year renovation of the Fossil Hall - right before the 2019 opening and then immediate closing due to COVID.
While the book could have used more dinosaurs (you can never have too many dinosaurs), it's a truly complete, hall-by-hall overview of one of the world's premiere natural history museums - right up there with the American in New York. Can't wait to revisit!!
Highly recommended addition to the bookshelf of any natural history nerd (they're a thing, right?) - especially if you can find it for under $3, as I did at Manassas' famous "McKay Used Books" this weekend. An afternoon very well spent :)...more
My only uncle was a U.S. Marine during WWII and Korea, and then later went on to a far longer career with IBM - yet to his dying day, in his heart (anMy only uncle was a U.S. Marine during WWII and Korea, and then later went on to a far longer career with IBM - yet to his dying day, in his heart (and all of our minds) he was first and foremost a Marine. And in a way that's kind of what's happened to me as well; from the mid-'70s to the early '90s, I was a professional graphic designer, until I just…stopped. Life happened, I returned to the U.S. and have had enjoyable second and then third careers elsewhere for the past 30+ year. But in my heart of hearts, I realize I am still a designer, even though my grown children have never known - or thought of - me as such.
And so anyway, this was a near perfect book for me (if - or so I thought - perhaps no one else), bringing back just a ton of memories. Yet as with The Book of Eels: Our Enduring Fascination with the Most Mysterious Creature in the Natural World, the book's cover called this an "international bestseller;" and to my astonishment the GR ratings and reviews seem to back that up - so, I dunno, go figure. But by the end I too was convinced that this is indeed a book for everyone, (or at least everyone who's ever admired a movie poster or even simply used Microsoft Word - although my one coworker told me near-daily that "I can't believe you're reading a book about…typefaces??"), and so am most happy that so many of you similar folks out there also found and enjoyed this wonderful book.
Just My Type hit home on so many levels and in so many places. For someone who already considered himself fairly well-steeped in the minutia of typography, I still managed to learned a helluva lot. History, of course - the backstories of the printing and typesetting processes, the "behind the scenes" stories of particular typefaces and type designers (including superstars like Hermann Zapf, Matthew Carter and Milton Glaser; as well as bad guys like Eric Gill, ultimately as famous for his "interest" in incest and bestiality as he was for his typefaces), but also beautiful trivia about the phrase "mind your p's and q's;" where the terms "uppercase" and "lowercase" come from (aka "majuscule" and "miniscule;" since while we often refer to uppercase as "capital letters" there is no equivalent term for lowercase letters); the evolution of the ampersand and the Interrobang, and the difference between Linotype and Monotype machines.
One needs to read this book with Google handy, so you can check out things like the unique "P" in Palatino, or the subtle differences between Helvetica and Arial, (or, okay, Eric Gill's weird sexual fetishes). The book also includes a number of great quotes, my two favorites being "I love to be a designer, but could we get rid of clients somehow please?,*" and "By all means break the rules, and break them beautifully, deliberately and well. That is one of the ends for which they exist."
But again, best of all were the personal memories it brought back. Childhood memories of Dymo label makers and my mom's old Selectric "golf ball" typewriter, where you could actually change fonts (gasp!!); college memories of California job cases and setting type by hand…and then all the professional memories that followed, many of which focused on the "hardware" of the time (all now long extinct) - rubber cement and waxers; T-squares and triangles; X-acto knives and Dexter mat cutters, French curves and ellipse templates; Rapidograph pens and Letraset dry-transfer sheets (which never gave you enough "e"s) - just great stuff.
_______________________________
* Clients - whaddya gonna do? I can now chuckle - although it was crazy frustrating at the time - when I recall how every single Taiwanese client would ultimately tell us: "I love the design - but could you make it RED?," (red being the "lucky color" in all Chinese cultures). But as you can see from the below sample of typographic logos we designed back in the '80s, it did kind of limit the range of one's portfolio…blue NEWS logo? How did you make it in there?? :) [image]...more
Wow, this was just really enjoyable. This sorta-prequel to Kōtarō's more famous Bullet Train is a two-day story that bounces back and forth between thWow, this was just really enjoyable. This sorta-prequel to Kōtarō's more famous Bullet Train is a two-day story that bounces back and forth between three main characters (non-spoiler: only two of which are the titular assassins), with a tightly-woven, "blink-and-you'll-miss-it" plot where every detail ultimately matters.
In both books, Kōtarō is an interesting writer, combining violence with oddball humor and left-field obsessions ("Thomas the Tank Engine" in Bullet Train; insects here; children's stickers in both). That said, the insect theme here is more relevant (and less annoying) than the train fixation in Train. Early on, one of Kōtarō's characters notes that humans are in many ways more similar to insects than to other mammals, in that we're the only species that live our lives in super-crowded communities stacked on top of each other. And near the end, another specifically compares us to locusts; existing in a benign state until we overpopulate, at which point we metamorphose into a darker, mindless, more violent horde.
Anyway, just great stuff. I definitely want to reread Bullet Train now, to see where there are remnants or echoes of Assassins; and then will ultimately get to the third book in the semi-series, the apparently back-to-insects The Mantis....more
So - a generally pleasant read, but with a few caveats. I started with the book ($1.11 used; I'll never understand McKay's pricing structure), which mSo - a generally pleasant read, but with a few caveats. I started with the book ($1.11 used; I'll never understand McKay's pricing structure), which makes for a decent nightstand read - i.e., best enjoyed a chapter or so at a time. But a number of reviews said the audiobook was much better, so switched to that for my commute - and then it was like spending time with an indisputably fun couple, but one who JUST WOULDN'T STOP TALKING ABOUT THEMSELVES AND DIDN'T KNOW WHEN TO LEAVE.
I like Offerman (mainly from "Parks and Rec" and a few smaller roles), but didn't know Mulally at all (other than from her stint as Offerman's gonzo spouse in "Parks"), as I have never watched "W&G." So overall found his bits funnier than hers - and yes, he really does talk like Ron Swanson ("they are both very competent cooks, providing us with agreeable provender with an astonishingly regular consistency"). But a little Megan goes a long way, so even the audiobook is best listened to in chunks (for a professional singer and actress, her voice is surprisingly nasal and whiny)...maybe alternated with something a little meatier.
Basically a solid 3+ read/listen, but can't quite round up to 4, despite them both being serious readers, dog people, and jigsaw junkies - all most positive traits. (NOTE: Have put this on my "oral history" list; not because it really is one but because that's just what both authors kept calling - although maybe that was just another of their endless sex jokes.)...more
Did you really think That you could hide fish in rice? Oh, the green paste burns!
JUST THE TWO OF US
There is nothing like long Direct Intense Awkward Unfortunate Eye contact To help us see That maybe you put my litter box Too close to your favorite chair
THAT TOP SHELF
I think I can jump to that top shelf I want to jump to that top shelf I know I can jump to that top shelf I am jumping to that top shelf I missed that top shelf by a good six feet And now everything is on the floor And I'm left wondering Why people even bother buying china If it breaks so easily
However, after the first half dozen islands or so this became dull and predictable, lacking even a sprinkling of the humor that made those other books so enjoyable. Basically, it's a litany of Mad Libs or "Create Your Own Adventure"-type stories: "In (year between 1500-1850), the island of (name) was spotted by (sailor/explorer) in the (North/South Atlantic, North/South Pacific) Ocean, and then seen again in (later year) by (later sailor/explorer); after which it was never found again."
Mildly interesting to learn that for a long time both Baja California and Korea were thought to be islands…but otherwise, sorry to say there's very little here to recommend....more
Eric Ambler is one of those "golden age" names you often hear in the same sentence as others like Deighton, Hall, Higgins, Innes, MacInnes, MacLean, eEric Ambler is one of those "golden age" names you often hear in the same sentence as others like Deighton, Hall, Higgins, Innes, MacInnes, MacLean, etc. - except that while I knew the name, I knew absolutely none of his books. However, after reading the wonderful Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang: The Boom in British Thrillers from Casino Royale to The Eagle Has Landed back in 2018, I started looking for him in the cavernous racks of McKays Used Books, and so found and read the enjoyable Passage of Arms a few years back...but then lost track of him until recently finding both this book and A Quiet Conspiracy,* (which I brought home for a grand total of $1.05).
So…fun story, and unique in that you don't actually learn what the "plot within the plot" is - is it a spy story, a heist, a political thriller? - until the last 40 pages.** And it also offers a nice change of scenery from the CIA-, KGB- and MI6-heavy plots that tend to dominate the genre, in that it focuses exclusively on the Turkish intelligence and police services. Anyway, will continue to watch for other Amblers if and as they land on the shelves, and of course still have Conspiracy to get to - but no rush; these books are generally light fillers best saved for when one needs a break between weightier readings. * For some reason, these are both old British editions of the books - no idea how they ended up in Manassas. But they were easily recognizable as such, since traditional British book design - much like traditional British cuisine, (and with apologies to my English friends) - is known more for its stodgy functionality than cutting-edge creativity.
** Unless, of course, you've ever seen or even heard of the 1964 movie (view spoiler)["Topkapi" (hide spoiler)], which is based on this book but basically gives away the WHOLE IDEA in not only the film's trailer, synopses, etc., but also the title itself…so, basically everything....more
I can't review this book without thinking of Ian Fleming's Octopussy - in part because I can now never think of Fraser at all without making that connI can't review this book without thinking of Ian Fleming's Octopussy - in part because I can now never think of Fraser at all without making that connection, as I only recently learned that he wrote the screenplay for that dreadful film. But it's also because this book is very similar to Fleming's in that both are unusual late-career entries to long-running series that consists of several short stories/novellas (three for Frasier; four for Fleming) rather than their usual full-length novels. (Oh yeah, and also because much like Flashman himself, Roger Moore's Bond character is also a ridiculous servant of the queen with a grossly over-inflated reputation and self-image, while in fact he is mainly a lecherous idiot whose main skill involves frequently getting captured and then escaping).
Anyway - in reserve order:
FLASHMAN AND THE TIGER: The best of the bunch, although spoiler - there are no tigers; the title merely refers to the fictional John Sebastian "Tiger Jack" Moran, who is not only the villain here but also in several Sherlock Holmes stories, where he is Professor Moriarty's right-hand man. As a result, Fraser sets up a hilarious third-act cameo and takedown of the famous detective, which alone is worth the price of admission, (which in my case was just $0.49 from the peerless McKay Used Books in Manassas).
The story begins (misleadingly) with an action-packed set piece featuring a typical Flashie attempt to outrun the Zulus at Isandlwana…but then jumps ahead fifteen years to boring old English where an elderly Flashman re-encounters Moran and has his brief run-in with Holmes. Decent if not memorable story; but more fun here are the Easter eggs. Aside from the Sherlock/Watson cameos, Flashman finally alludes to his presence at both Gettysburg and Omdurman - two glaring omissions in his otherwise omnipresent mid-19th Century history that many readers have long wondered about. Frasier also makes mention of a "Captain Younghusband" in his notes on Isandlwana - but to my surprise this was neither the famous Francis nor his lesser known brother George, but a Capt. Reginald Younghusband who I'd never heard of before, (likely because he did not survive the battle). And finally, the odd cover illustration: Flashman generally appears as a heroic if often pompous figure on his book jackets. But here? He's in fact the drunken old man being poked by Holmes…although you'll have to read to understand why.
THE SUBTLETIES OF BACCARAT: An ironic title, since as Flashman correctly notes "baccarat is the most imbecile of card games, in which half-wits sit around a large table…Endless fun, assuming you can count to nine." And as far as I can tell, it really is a stupid game - God knows why Fleming had Bond play it so often; but luckily they changed it to Texas Hold'em in Daniel Craig's "Casino Royale," (although I'm sure if that had been a Roger Moore movie, he'd have been playing "Go Fish").
THE ROAD TO CHARING CROSS: Nope; haven't read it - longest of the three and takes place in Europe; my least favorite setting for the Flashman stories (other than England itself). Will probably return to it at some point; but as I've noted elsewhere, having gotten through most of the "interesting" (to me) Flashman's, I'm probably done with him for a while - it was really only the low-low price that attracted me to this one....more
Another beautiful (if totally unnecessary) addition to my mountaineering library, this coffee table book originally cost $50, but was available "like Another beautiful (if totally unnecessary) addition to my mountaineering library, this coffee table book originally cost $50, but was available "like new" at McKay's for just $2 - how could I refuse? Will eventually actually read it, but the pictures alone are at least a $20 value :)...more
Okay, I know I swore in my review of the previous book in Laumer's "Imperium," Assignment in Nowhere, that there was "NO WAY I'm going anywhere near tOkay, I know I swore in my review of the previous book in Laumer's "Imperium," Assignment in Nowhere, that there was "NO WAY I'm going anywhere near the 4th and final book in the series" (largely based on my growing disappointment with the series overall as well as the hellacious cover). But after my previous book - The Black Bats: CIA Spy Flights over China from Taiwan 1951-1969 - proved to be a bit challenging and textbooky (albeit fascinating), I decided I needed to follow that with something fluffy and dumb; and so when I saw this staring out at me recently at McKay's Used Books…well, 99 cents later there I was, and here we are.
Sadly, "fluffy and dumb" doesn't begin to describe this stinker. I wish I could say it was so bad that it was good in some sort of goofy or kitschy way, but in truth it was really so bad that it was just really bad. Plot makes no sense, characters make no sense, English- and Swedish-speaking rat/aliens make no sense…
The first three books of the "Imperium" were written in 1961, '65 and '68, before Laumer suffered a massive stroke in 1971. He eventually returned to writing, but as Wikipedia diplomatically puts it, "the quality of his work suffered, and his career declined." For whatever reason, Laumer returned to the Imperium in 1990 - a 22 year gap - for one of his final books; but, well…the world could have easily survived without this one.
That said, Laumer's concept of the multiverse "blight" is still pretty solid (see my review of Assigment for a quick summary of how that works), and so it would be nice to see a different author pick this up and run with it. But please - no more rat-people!...more
Found this in the "Humor" section of McKay's Used Books while I was looking for, I dunno, more cat poetry or another parody of Donald Trump, and thougFound this in the "Humor" section of McKay's Used Books while I was looking for, I dunno, more cat poetry or another parody of Donald Trump, and thought it might be something dryly amusing like The Zombie Survival Guide or How to Survive a Robot Uprising. But while the author here occasionally - occasionally - plants his tongue ever-so-slightly in cheek, this is NOT a funny book. Instead, it is a thorough (I assume) overview of what is politely referred to as "competitive intelligence," but is in fact a highly questionable - and definitely unethical - introduction to corporate espionage.* (Indeed, the only real humor here is unintentional, with glaringly dated references to AOL CD-ROMs, pay phones and fax machines - reminds you just how much has changed in 20 years.) And okay, while some of this might have actually been useful way back when I was still doing international business, I might also still be in behind bars somewhere today if I'd actually used any of it.
That said, the information itself is interesting enough, but starts to drag well before the halfway point, much like reading a whole book of magic tricks that you're never going to actually learn or use. So probably best as a bathroom book that you can read a page or two at a visit, like how my parents used to read "Reader's Digest" and "Guideposts."
Still, 49 cents well-spent - although worth nowhere near the original $14.95 asking price at downtown DC's "International Spy Museum," where this was apparently first purchased.
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* So maybe the whole "humor" label was a proactive legal disclaimer - the "hey, I was only joking!" defense....more
Like most folks (I'm pretty sure), while I had some previous - if limited - knowledge of John UPDATE ON HARPER'S FERRY (ORIGINAL REVIEW BELOW):
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Like most folks (I'm pretty sure), while I had some previous - if limited - knowledge of John Brown and his raid on Harper's Ferry, I had never heard of the Kennedy Farm (aka "John Brown's HQS," above) prior to reading this book and watching the excellent miniseries "The Good Lord Bird," (and while I've never been a real fan of Ethan Hawke, he is simply outstanding here as John Brown).
And so when we drove back out to the Ferry after Christmas, we found the town - as expected - swamped with tourists visiting the frou-frou coffee shops, "country décor" stores, and other nonsense which has totally filled up the "historic downtown" area. But a further 20 minute drive across the river along a winding, narrow mountain road brought us to the Kennedy Farm, which - aside from one Marine veteran - we had all to ourselves. Not really a lot to see - most of it shown below - but for history buffs, totally worth the side trip.*
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* (As is the excellent Asian food truck "Yatai Hibachi" a couple miles west of town, run by a delightful Balinese couple - four stars!)
Note on "downtown:" Fair enough; the town was pretty much destroyed at least twice during the war, so really nothing original remaining. And so the only recognizable piece of history is the old engine house, aka "John Brown's Fort" shown in the background on the jacket of this book, and which is in fact the most visited tourist attraction in West Virginia, even though it has been moved and rebuilt four times over the years, and is less-than-original at this point. _______________________________
ORIGINAL REVIEW: The Flashman books are uniformly brilliant, in large part because they are uniformly the same: our dastardly, cowardly hero rogering his way through various violent events of the mid-1800s, generally - but not always - as tied to the then-still-great British Empire.
Fraser's research is also uniformly outstanding, whether uncovering minor details of the historic events themselves, or simply his incredible 19th century world-building, be it Borneo, Ethiopia, Afghanistan or - in this case - late 1850's New York City. So basically, if you're a "Flashmaniac" to begin with, how much you enjoy any particular book depends in large part on how much you care about that particular incident or part of the world.
I personally have never been much interested in "Flashman in America," but now that I live close enough to Harper's Ferry that we can literally just drive out there for lunch, I figured it was time I learned a bit about the place. And while I consider myself fairly well-read on the Civil War, this particular pre-War event largely slipped under my radar, so that pretty much all I knew about John Brown was what I learned from the 1974 "Kansas" album cover,** (and more recently, from watching the excellent "Hell on Wheels" TV series, which touched on it occasionally and featured a rough version of the Pottawatomie massacre in its "Bleeding Kansas" episode).
Well, anyway, now I know a LOT more. As always, Fraser brings his history to vivid life, so that I not only learned about Brown himself - both pre- and (however briefly) post-raid - but could also probably name and describe nearly half of the ridiculously small number of individuals who accompanied him in his lunatic endeavor, (I mean seriously; what was he thinking??) With Fraser's passing in 2008, this is as close as we'll get to an actual book about Flashman and the Civil War (although his involvement serving on both sides of that conflict, and presence at Chancellorsville and Gettysburg are repeated mentioned in asides and footnotes), so while this book is up to Fraser's usual lofty standards, it also serves as a sad reminder of what could have been if Fraser had been able to squeak out just one more adventure… ________________________________
** This one here:
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…and in fact, I was so little-informed that I wasn't really sure what Brown was so pissed off about or even which side he was fighting for. I know - pathetic. ________________________________
EVEN MORE ORIGINAL NOTE: While I am a big fan of the Flashman books, I have always been put off by their almost cartoonish and often TOTALLY un-PC covers, to the point where I was embarrassed to be seen reading them in public.
Well, looks like someone else finally realized that - so kudos to Harper Collins, who from the very-late 1990's on began reprinting them in this semi-respectable series - thanks, HC!!...more
I swear, with all the crap saved from my childhood, I should be spending my time posting on eBay instead of Goodreads!
Case in point: back in "simpler I swear, with all the crap saved from my childhood, I should be spending my time posting on eBay instead of Goodreads!
Case in point: back in "simpler times" (i.e, the late-'50s), the high point of any given week was shopping for breakfast cereal, because all the good ones had free toys inside - especially, for some reason, Nabisco's Rice and Wheat Honeys. We'd get a new box, dump it all out in a big bowl to find the prize, and then…I dunno, I guess we'd eventually eat the cereal. But that's not important.
Well, like most kids that age, I was obsessed with dinosaurs - but equally so with the saber-tooth tigers, woolly mammoths and other monstrous mammals (the term "megafauna" hadn't been coined yet) which followed them. So it was a pretty big deal when in 1957 (or so says the internet), Nabisco tossed this set of "pre-historic beasts" into the mix:
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…and damn if I didn't recently find half of 'em in this big ol' box of dinosaurs that sat undisturbed in my mom's basement for a good half century, and which my new grandson is now starting to enjoy.
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So (and with apologies), all a long way of saying that I've been fascinated with these creatures and the famous "La Brea tar pits" for a LONG time. I finally had the good fortune to visit this world famous site in the middle of freakin' downtown Los Angeles - the only actively excavated "urban" Ice Age fossil site found anywhere in the world - and the equally impressive Page Museum some twenty years ago, and truly hope to visit again someday. But in the meantime, this book was a great way to learn some of the actual science behind the still-jaw-dropping "wow" factor of those bizarre, enormous skeletons.
The book covers the creation of the asphalt deposits; their human discovery and excavation/exploitation; some of the more famous paleontologists connected to La Brea (including Chester Stock and the eponymous George C. Page…although now I think about it, I'm pretty sure I'm using that wrong - it should be the museum that is eponymous, right?)…as well as - and most importantly - the critters themselves. Sabertoothed cats and American lions; zebra-like equids and enormous bison; short-faced bears twice the size of a grizzly; camels and dire wolves; mammoths and mastodons and those truly weird giant sloths…whole thing made me feel like a kid again!
There's much to learn here: paleopathology, the difference between fossilization and petrification…and as always I was just fascinated by the ridiculous amount of information smart folk can glean just by staring at a bunch of old bones: "Studies of the bones in the throat that anchor the tongue indicate that this species could roar like a lion…its robust front limbs indicate that it sought out prey that greatly exceeded its own weight, but its skeletal structure suggests that it did not chase its prey extensively…this animal was an active predator that relied on stealth and ambush rather than speed, using surprise and a short rapid pursuit followed by a violent impact and a lethal bite."
So yay - science is cool! Now go use it to fix the damn planet....more
You can grasp everything you need to know about my relationship with poetry from the fact that fully half the books on my "poetry-verse" bookshelf werYou can grasp everything you need to know about my relationship with poetry from the fact that fully half the books on my "poetry-verse" bookshelf were written by either cats, dogs or cockroaches. But damn if those little bastards can't write; and they seem to have a deeper understanding of the world and their place in it than I ever will :)
I haven't yet read Marciuliano's debut I Could Pee on This: and Other Poems by Cats, but I did read his later Claw The System: Poems From The Cat Uprising which I loved; and as I'm much more a dog than cat person to begin with, was therefore thrilled to find this book at our giant used bookstore…and IT DID NOT DISAPPOINT. As with Claw, just great stuff:
LITTLE ONE
WHO YOU LOOKING AT, HUH? WHO YOU LOOKING AT?! YOU THINK I'M AFRAID OF YOU, HUH?! YOU THINK I'M AFRAID OF YOU?! YOU'RE NOT SO BIG! YOU'RE NOT SO TOUGH! C'MON, I DARE YOU! C'MON, I'LL DESTROY YOU! THAT'S IT, JUST WALK AWAY! GO ON, JUST WALK AWAY! Oh please, just walk away Oh God, that dog was a monster Oh man, I need to relax Or at least switch to herbal tea
WINGMAN
I wag my tail I tilt my head I give a little wink I flash my smile I show my belly I give a little lick I do it all From sit to speak To attract women far and near Then you chime in With something about "fan fiction" And I realize we're going to die alone
AND THEN OUR EYES LOCK
And then our eyes lock And then the world stops And then I realize Man, I'm really wrapped around your leg Man, I'm really going to town Man, I'm clearly not stopping So believe me when I say Our next twenty minutes together Will be the most awkward of my entire life
Okay, so that makes an even dozen books on my "Shackleton/Crean" bookshelf, which means I needed this coffee table book like an eighth hole in my headOkay, so that makes an even dozen books on my "Shackleton/Crean" bookshelf, which means I needed this coffee table book like an eighth hole in my head. But for $2 at our massive used bookstore, I just couldn't say no.
Little new here, but the book does do a particularly nice job covering Shackleton's less famous - i.e., not the Endurance - voyages in both text and photos. So necessary or not, that was definitely two bucks well spent....more
Swear to God, as soon as this maniac disappears for good, I promise to never read - or hopefully, even think - about him again. But UNTIL then, it is Swear to God, as soon as this maniac disappears for good, I promise to never read - or hopefully, even think - about him again. But UNTIL then, it is important to remind ourselves as often as possible about just how deranged, dangerous and poisonous this buffoon and his enablers were and (sadly) continue to be. So while the topics and people covered in this collection may seem dated today (because Good Lord, 2019 seems like a century ago); nearly every one of these fools and/or villains remain lurking in the wings - at least until the next (and hopefully final) MAGA-infused election. And so…
I've never really "gotten" poetry, on top of which I always found "Lithgow the actor" a little over the top for my taste;* but he is hands-down absolutely brilliant here. The humor, the incisiveness, the delightful, "how did he do that??" wordplay - everything comes together here in a truly bravura performance; whether presented in Lithgow's own unique stylings or in any of his spot-on nods to Shelly, Carroll, Burns, Rogers & Hammerstein, Gilbert & Sullivan or even Mother Goose. Wish I could put a good dozen of his poems here for those who will never read the book (although you ALL should), but here's just one example you should immediately recognize:
I am the very model of an ex-lieutenant general, Although my reputation is decidedly ephemeral. In spite of all my service in remote Afghanis-stin afore; No officer has screwed the pooch so much as Michael Flynn-afore.
When President Obama made me head of all things clandestine, He realized he'd brought to life a governmental Frankenstein. But then I made a killing in a case of public pillory By shouting "Lock her up!" in my harangue opposing Hillary.
So Dumpty made me National Security Advisor-y Until I let the crafty Russian secret service hire me. Then I became the target of a special Counsel crime report, A fate I shared with Cohen, Donald Jr., and with Manafort.
I plead the Fifth Amendment when the arbiters of law attack My meeting Jared Kushner in a room with Sergey Kislyak. Although my reputation is decidedly ephemeral, I am the very model of an ex-lieutenant general. ___________________________________
* Although he was absolutely brilliant as Dr. Lizardo in "The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai" - am I right??
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