Let's see: Touching Spirit Bear for 1st period
The Ransom of Red Chief by O. Henry and The Outsiders for 2nd
poetry and Holes 3rd
What are you reading in general?
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variol son
- The Gap Into Spam
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Enjoy.
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Loredoctor
- Lord
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Avatar
- Immanentizing The Eschaton
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Man, I just read a book about the war in the Pacific, called Flyboys by James Bradley, the son of one of the Iwo Jima flag-raisers. His second book, I highly recommend it.
He really puts things into persepctive, and what I especially appreciated was that he pulled no punches. For an American, he was as honest and forthright about the atrocities committed by America as the actions of the Japanese.
Learned a lot I hadn't known, such as the fact that during the insurrection in the Philippines, American military policy was to kill everybody, man women and child, over the age of 10.
His writing isn't incredible, but it pulls no punches, and uncovers military actions only recently declassified. He talks about wars of American aggression against Mexico for control of California, New Mexico and Texas, genocide carried out against American Indians, all sorts of stuff that was glossed over. I highly recommend it, if you can stomach it.
--A
He really puts things into persepctive, and what I especially appreciated was that he pulled no punches. For an American, he was as honest and forthright about the atrocities committed by America as the actions of the Japanese.
Learned a lot I hadn't known, such as the fact that during the insurrection in the Philippines, American military policy was to kill everybody, man women and child, over the age of 10.
His writing isn't incredible, but it pulls no punches, and uncovers military actions only recently declassified. He talks about wars of American aggression against Mexico for control of California, New Mexico and Texas, genocide carried out against American Indians, all sorts of stuff that was glossed over. I highly recommend it, if you can stomach it.
--A
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Dragonlily
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Avatar
- Immanentizing The Eschaton
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I did at first think that he did. But he's no more condemnatory about those than about other atrocities.
The best way of describing it is that he keeps things in perspective.
His exploration of the war starts all the way back before Perry even arrived in Japan, examines the existing society and culture, then goes on to explore the impact of contact with the west.
One of the passages that really sticks is near the end, when he's talking to a navy pilot, giving him the finally uncovered details of the death of his friend. The pilot had earlier admitted to him that he'd strafed plenty of civilians. When the author described his friends death, the book reads as follows:
Pilot: That's a hell of a thing.
<pause>
Author: What is?
P: It wasn't right that they cut his head off.
<pause>
A: Maybe the civilians you strafed thought that was a hell of a thing.
<pause>
P: I guess it all depends which side you're on.
He's not trying to make either the Americans or the Japanese look bad/evil/inhuman/whatever. He's trying to put peoples actions into societal, governmental, cultural and historical perspective.
It certainly wasn't an apology for either sides atrocities. I'll definitely be looking for his other book, Flags of our Fathers.
--A
The best way of describing it is that he keeps things in perspective.
His exploration of the war starts all the way back before Perry even arrived in Japan, examines the existing society and culture, then goes on to explore the impact of contact with the west.
One of the passages that really sticks is near the end, when he's talking to a navy pilot, giving him the finally uncovered details of the death of his friend. The pilot had earlier admitted to him that he'd strafed plenty of civilians. When the author described his friends death, the book reads as follows:
Pilot: That's a hell of a thing.
<pause>
Author: What is?
P: It wasn't right that they cut his head off.
<pause>
A: Maybe the civilians you strafed thought that was a hell of a thing.
<pause>
P: I guess it all depends which side you're on.
He's not trying to make either the Americans or the Japanese look bad/evil/inhuman/whatever. He's trying to put peoples actions into societal, governmental, cultural and historical perspective.
It certainly wasn't an apology for either sides atrocities. I'll definitely be looking for his other book, Flags of our Fathers.
--A
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Roland of Gilead
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Dragonlily
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The Aeneid
you're more advanced than a cockroach,
have you ever tried explaining yourself
to one of them?
~ alan bates, the mothman prophecies
i've had this with actors before, on the set,
where they get upset about the [size of my]
trailer, and i'm always like...take my trailer,
cause... i'm from Kentucky
and that's not what we brag about.
~ george clooney, inside the actor's studio
a straight edge for legends at
the fold - searching for our
lost cities of gold. burnt tar,
gravel pits. sixteen gears switch.
Haphazard Lucy strolls by.
~ dennis r wood ~
have you ever tried explaining yourself
to one of them?
~ alan bates, the mothman prophecies
i've had this with actors before, on the set,
where they get upset about the [size of my]
trailer, and i'm always like...take my trailer,
cause... i'm from Kentucky
and that's not what we brag about.
~ george clooney, inside the actor's studio
a straight edge for legends at
the fold - searching for our
lost cities of gold. burnt tar,
gravel pits. sixteen gears switch.
Haphazard Lucy strolls by.
~ dennis r wood ~
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Loredoctor
- Lord
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Avatar
- Immanentizing The Eschaton
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Set in the late 40's/early 50's, the tale of/"by" the Butler of the late Lord Darlington, so-called nazi collaborator.
Much more about that generation of "service givers" than anything else, a beautiful story, well written. A great glimpse of dedication and professionalism in the first half of the last century.
--A
Much more about that generation of "service givers" than anything else, a beautiful story, well written. A great glimpse of dedication and professionalism in the first half of the last century.
--A
Well, Avatar summed it up very well. I'm reading it on recommendation from my father in law. He reads heaps, and I asked him for a list of his favourite novels, and in amongst "Lord of the flies" and "1984" and "Lolita" is "Remains of the Day". In other words highly recommended.
Loremaster, you should definitely check it out.
Loremaster, you should definitely check it out.
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Loredoctor
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