Author: ekkarn

The God Delusion – Richard Dawkins

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Book 5 is British biologist Richard Dawkins’ 2006 bestseller The God Delusion. I will not get into any long discussion of what I believe or don’t believe, that is for everyone to decide on their own, but if you want to read a book that opens your eyes to religion and science read this book. From Wikipedia:

Dawkins writes that The God Delusion contains four “consciousness-raising” messages:

Atheists can be happy, balanced, moral, and intellectually fulfilled.

Natural selection and similar scientific theories are superior to a “God hypothesis” —the illusion of intelligent design— in explaining the living world and the cosmos.

Children should not be labeled by their parents’ religion. Terms like “Catholic child” or “Muslim child” should make people cringe.

Atheists should be proud, not apologetic, because atheism is evidence of a healthy, independent mind.[4]’

and from Douglas Adams to whom Dawkins dedicates the book:

And I thought and thought and thought. But I just didn’t have enough to go on, so I didn’t really come to any resolution. I was extremely doubtful about the idea of god, but I just didn’t know enough about anything to have a good working model of any other explanation for, well, life, the universe, and everything to put in its place. But I kept at it, and I kept reading and I kept thinking. Sometime around my early thirties I stumbled upon evolutionary biology, particularly in the form of Richard Dawkins’s books The Selfish Gene and then The Blind Watchmaker, and suddenly (on, I think the second reading of The Selfish Gene) it all fell into place. It was a concept of such stunning simplicity, but it gave rise, naturally, to all of the infinite and baffling complexity of life. The awe it inspired in me made the awe that people talk about in respect of religious experience seem, frankly, silly beside it. I’d take the awe of understanding over the awe of ignorance any day.“

Douglas Adams The Salmon of Doubt, p 99.

One of the most interesting aspects of the book was the discussion of the meme (rhymes with cream). The meme is the basic unit of cultural transmission, or imitation. A term coined by Dawkins in his book The Selfish Gene. This has led to memetics which is the study of the working of memes: how they interact, replicate and evolve. From the book I am reading now Virus of the Mind  The New Science of the Meme by Richard Brodie:

The meme is the secret code of human behavior, a Rosetta Stone finally giving us the key to understanding religion, politics, psychology and cultural evolution……….

A very interesting book about an intriguing subject! I’ll tell you more when I’m done!

Book 4 – Ghost Country – Patrick Lee

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So this week has been work filled. Like I said earlier in the week after being on furlough last week I was working with the drilling department this week. I spent my work days, which started at 7:15 am, in Philly in the area around the intersection of Girard and Lancaster Avenues. Throw in back to back nights at Target until 11:00 pm and by the end of work last night I was beat! The only good thing was that there were periods of the day when I had to wait to take readings on the percolation test so I got to read! I took a paperback that I had picked up at Borders with my gift card that Andrew gave me for Christmas, so Book 4 for 2011 became Ghost Country by Patrick Lee. The book is actually a sequel to Lee’s first book The Breach and by the time I figured that out I was too far along and the storyline so engrossing that I couldn’t stop. If I had it to do over I would read The Breech first!! Anyway this book starts with Paige Campbell an employee of Tangent Corporation, a company that monitors strange entities that come through the Breach.  Some seem benign and others dangerous. As the book opens, Paige and her co-workers are returning from a meeting with the President of the US after showing him one of the entities. The motorcade that they are traveling in is attacked and everyone killed except Paige who is captured. Prior to that capture she gets a message to a co-worker Bethany to take the matching entity to the one Paige has and leave Tangent’s Border Town. Then she should  find Travis Chase, because he can help her. Exploring the entity Travis and Bethany discover that the entity opens a window that can be accessed to travel into the future. When Bethany and Travis use the entity,  they see a US about seventy years in the future. The Washington DC that they see  is crumbling  devoid of people and cars! It appears that the event that caused the havoc is just four months away! That knowledge sets Travis and Bethany on a mission to save Paige and the world!!!

From the cover:  “In a word: Brilliant…..left me breathless and awed – James Rollins

“Wow! Double wow! Starkly original Ghost Country will make Asimov and Heinlein cheer with the angels. The techno-thriller meets sci-fi and the rsult is mind-blowing” Stephen Coonts

I agree the book was great and the action kept me turning pages quickly! I enjoyed the characters and my only regret is that I now have to go BACK and read The Breech!!!

Book 3 – The Lost Throne – Chris Kuzneski

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By Chris Kuzneski

Book No 3 for 2011The Lost Throne by Chris Kuzneski is the fourth book of five in the Jonathan Payne David Jones series and it’s a good one.  I love books that are based on history and teach me something! This one certainly did!  After seven monks are brutally killed at the Holy Trinity Monastery in Greece, Nick Dial, head of Interpol’s Homicide Division is called to investigate the crime. Video footage of the murders reveal that the murders appear to have been commited by Spartans!! Meanwhile ex-special forces officer Jonathan Payne receives frantic calls from a Richard Byrd in Russia who is afraid he is being followed and will be killed! After Byrd is murdered Payne reaches his assistant, a graduate archeology major at Stanford, Allison Brown. Brown, Byrd;s assistant was set to meet Byrd and leave Russia when he was killed. Payne sets out to rescue Brown and discover why Byrd was killed. The remainder of the story revolves around Byrd’s search for the The Lost Throne of Zeus and that puts Payne and his partner on a collision course with the murderers in Greece! The story was great the characters believable and likable and I am certainly going back to catch up on the series! But what did it teach me?

Well, while the story was set in St Petersburg I learned some facts about that city, including the fact that because of  all the rivers and bays it is known as the “Venice of the North” and that because of the geology and water the subway system is the deepest in the world!! Part of the action took place in the Nevsky Prospekt Station. (See photo). Another setting was the St Isaac Square where Jon and Allison where Allison was telling Jon about The Bronze Horseman statue when they were confronted by Russian soldiers and Allison was told to tell the soldier something he didn’t know about the city and she responded by telling him  that Peter the Great opened the first museum in St Petersburg but was afraid that no one would come so he offered a free shot of vodka when they reached the exit of the museum a tradition that continues to today! But back to the statue which stands in the middle of  St. Isaac’s Square and honors Nicholas I, the former emperor of Russia. The statute depicts Nicholas riding into battle. The statue was hailed as an architectural marvel when it was built because it was the first equestrian statue ever with only two support points, the rear legs of the rearing horse! When I was looking for the picture of the statue I saw in Wikipedia that the station rests on a pedestal created by the largest stone ever moved by man!! you can read about it here.

The majority of the story though takes place in Greece, where the monks were killed at the Holy Trinity Monastery one of the six monasteries of the Meteora (suspended rocks) of the Eastern Orthodox Church in Greece, second in importance only to Mount Athos. The description of this monastery took me immediately to Google to look for images and they are breathtaking. You can read more about them here The final action of the book takes place at Mount Athos the most important center of the Eastern Orthodox Church in Greece. The Mount is located at the end of a peninsula in the northeastern corner of Greece. There are twenty monasteries spread across the peninsula and only males are permitted and access is limited it is a self-governing territory like the Vatican!

So when people me ask, why do you read fiction? I respond that it takes me to places I’ve never been and teaches me! That’s why I love the writing of James Rollins, Clive Cussler, and Dan Brown and others of this genre. Hopefully, I can say the same about Boyd Morrsion whose debut novel The Ark I started this morning! So I hope I peeked your interest and you’ll pick up The Lost Throne,,,,,,,,oh yeah remember the guy in Russia was looking for the lost Statue of Zeus…… wonder where it could be????????

Book 2 – 2011 The Devil We Know: Dealing with the New Iranian Superpower

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So I finally finished the second book for 2011 and it was a Kindle ebook and non-fiction The Devil We Know:Dealing with the New Iranian Superpower by Robert Baer. Baer is an ex-CIA operative in the Middle East and considered one of the world’s foremost authorities on the Middle East.  The book chronicles Iran’s rise to superpower in the Middle East and the range of  their influence, which extends from control of southern Iraq to Lebanon and the Palestinians. At times the book is scary because you see that the policies of the US have only helped to extend Iran’s influence in the Gulf! But his final synopsis which has the US negotiating with Iran and maybe even becoming allies is potentially (in my opinion) the best course for US policy. The book also explains the differences between Shia and Sunni particularly as it comes to terrorism. The book is highly recommended for anyone who is interested in politics and US policy in the Middle East! I would certainly read another book by Baer and may pick up Sleeping with the Devil: How Washington Sold Our Soul for Saudi Crude at the library!!

Book 1 – 2011 – Crush – Alan Jacobson

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WooHoo! Finally I finished the first book of 2011 – Alan Jacobson’s Crush. It was another book read on the Kindle. I am also reading on the Kindle The Devil We Knew by Robert Baer a book about Iran that we gave to Peter for Christmas, that is really good! Anyway back to Crush. The novel is set in the wine country of California and is the second book in the Karen Vail series. Karen Vail is a profiler who works tracking serial killers. The first book is The 7th Victim, which I saw at Barnes and Noble a while back and made a note on my phone about to look for at the library. But when I got the Kindle I checked out some of the books that I had made notes about and there it was it was for a good price but Crush was a better price FREE! So I’ve read the series out of order!

Like I said the series revolves around Karen Vail a FBI profiler and single mother, who was on vacation in the California wine country, with her boyfriend Robby Hernandez. A mutilated body is discovered in a Wine Cave and soon Karen isn’t on vacation and more but working with the local police to track down the killer. It’s a thriller because you know the killer but it’s one of those, what will he do before you can catch him books! Karen is a likable character and the action is pretty fast paced with a few twists and turns and more dead bodies!

I will certainly read more of Jacobson’s books my question now is, do I go back and read the first book, which available on the Kindle or do I go and get the third book out of the library! Jacobson left so many threads hanging at the end of the book that I think I’ll go read Book 3 Velocity next and then go back and read The 7th Victim!

Sara Davidson Leap and Paul Levine Riptide

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Leap -Sara Davidson


Leap! Sara Davidson

So 2010 ends with 44 books read down the stretch I finished two books No 43 was “LEAP “What Will We Do with the Rest of Our Lives” by Sara Davidson. Conducting over 150 interviews from 2003 to 2006 Sara Davidson has crafted a book that explores what us boomers will be facing as we approach the later parts of our lives. From the dust cover ” she explores such questions as:

How does a high powered person learn to walk down the ladder gracefully?

How can women continue to bew sensual and not touch deprived?

How do we arrange to grow old with friends? (this is my favorite part the idea is that friends with lots in common will agree to live in close proximity so that they can take care of each other as we age!)

What will be the fire at the center of our lives??

Why are we still here?

The book is full of great insight and stories from folks like me and many other approaching the big 60!! It’s left me with questions and I’ll probably re-read this one next year!!

Riptide Paul Levine

Riptide – Paul Levine

Book 44 was the first book I read on my new Kindle that son three Peter and his wife Missy gave to me for Christmas “Riptide” by Paul Levine. Ok so all through this book something seemed familiar so I did a quick look back at the old Lassiter titles and didn’t see the title – the book “Slashback”, which I read in 1995 seemed to be the closest and with good reason because that was the original tilte of the book! Anyway it was a fun good read from the Amazon review:

Someone ripped off Jake Lassiter’s favorite client, octogenarian Sam Kazdoy, stealing $1.6 million in negotiable bonds. Then Jake’s old Buddy, Berto Zaldivar, a lawyer-turned-smuggler, ends up dead. The trail of clues from both crimes leads to a sinister professional windsurfer and his companion, Lila Summers, herself a champion athlete and a lethal femme fatale. Jake chases the missing money and the mysterious woman from Miami to Bimini to Maui where, in an explosive finale he learns lessons never taught on the football field or in the courtroom.

“Irreverent…genuinely clever…great fun.” – The New York Times Book Review

“Take one part John Grisham, two parts Carl Hiaasen, throw in a dash of John D. MacDonald, and voila! You’ve got Jake Lassiter.” – Tulsa Sun

So if you’ve never read a Jake Lassiter book check one out and take it from me they’re as good the second time around as the first!!!

Track of the Cat – Nevada Barr

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WooHoo! So after a month plus of slugging through Michael Koryta’s So Cold the River and only getting half through it, although I was enjoying it, I just haven’t had the time to finish it! I did finish a shorter book Track the Cat by Nevada Barr is book 42 for the year. The book is the first Anna Pigeon novel. Anna is a national park ranger and here’s what it says about her on the back cover of the book:

“The fascinating hero of Nevada Barr’s award-winning series , park ranger Anna Pigeon has brought an unyielding love of nature and sense of fair play to the mystery game. Track of the Cat is the acclaimed  novel that first introduced readers to Anna, as a woman looking for peace in the wilderness – and finding mystery instead…..

The murder in this case is a fellow park ranger and when the murder is blamed on a rouge mountain lion and Ana’s investigation proves that that was not the case, Anna sets out to find out what really happened! Althoug I didn’t think that the plot was all that great I did like the character and didn’t guess the murderer! I will probably continue with the series and already have a few more books on my Mount to Be Read!!

Book 42 – Track of the Cat – Nevada Barr

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WooHoo! So after a month plus of slugging through Michael Koryta’s So Cold the River and only getting half through it, although I was enjoying it, I just haven’t had the time to finish it! I did finish a shorter book Track the Cat by Nevada Barr is book 42 for the year. The book is the first Anna Pigeon novel. Anna is a national park ranger and here’s what it says about her on the back cover of the book:

“The fascinating hero of Nevada Barr’s award-winning series , park ranger Anna Pigeon has brought an unyielding love of nature and sense of fair play to the mystery game. Track of the Cat is the acclaimed  novel that first introduced readers to Anna, as a woman looking for peace in the wilderness – and finding mystery instead…..

The murder in this case is a fellow park ranger and when the murder is blamed on a rouge mountain lion and Ana’s investigation proves that that was not the case, Anna sets out to find out what really happened! Althoug I didn’t think that the plot was all that great I did like the character and didn’t guess the murderer! I will probably continue with the series and already have a few more books on my Mount to Be Read!!

Exploring Rock – Black Country Communion

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So the other night we were watching the end of That Metal Show and the guest was Jason Bonham. They were talking about his new group. Andrew quickly said that the album and the group Black Country Communion was good and may be something that I would like. Quickly it appeared from his collection. I ripped it and put it on the iPod and since then it has gotten several listens. He was right I do like it!! The band is a new supergroup, although in the liner notes guitarist Joe Bonamassa says, they should not be called a supergroup but rather “overpaid underachievers”. Though I don’t think that there is any underachieving on this album. The group consists of Glenn Hughes on bass and vocals. Not knowing anything about Hughes I consulted Wikipedia and found that he was formerly the bass player for Deep Purple and briefly fronted Balck Sabbath in the 1980s, and has had a long solo career as well as playing on loads of other albums! The guitarist Joe Bonamassa I do know about. He is a favorite blues guitarist of mine and one of the best around! On keyboards is Derek Sherinian. Sherinian who also has worked with many artist during his career including a stint with one of my son’s favorite bands Dream Theater. Here’s something about Derek from his website:

It’s rare to find an equal mix of style and substance –– but keyboardist Derek Sherinian has balanced the two admirably during his 18-year professional career. While he has performed alongside some of rock’s flashiest showmen, Sherinian has also proven that he’s more than capable of trading licks with many of the most respected musicians on the planet

Last but certainly not least is drummer Jason Bonham. Bonham is the son of Led Zeppelin’s drummer John Bonham and tours with Jason Bonham’s Led Zeppelin Experience.

Here’s what their website says about their music:

Black Country Communion is a devastating head-on collision between American and British rock influences—a true supergroup that delivers a titanic rock experience greater than the sum of its supremely talented parts

I agree they sound a little like Led Zeppelin but still have their own sound. I like both Hughes’ and Bonamassa’s vocals on the album and Bonamassa’s guitar shines on every track! The album rocks from the opening bass riff of “Black Country”. I am listening now and one of my other favorite tracks is on “Beggarman”. At least three times when “Song of Yesterday” has come on I have looked to see what the track was, so that must be a favorite, too!! I love Bonamassa and Hughes trading of vocals on this track. “Sista Jane” is another great track along with the closing track “Too Late for the Sun” all 11:19 minutes!

So if you are like me and like 70s rock check out Black Country Communion! In the liner notes Bonamassa’s number one tip on his guide to being a super group “Avoid annoucing the name before consulting the United States trademark office. Who would have thought Letz-Zep-Again was taken”. So that may tell you were there head was in making this album!! Check’em out and one places to do that is their Myspace page Black Country Communion

Here’s the band performing “Song of Yesterday”

Moonlight Mile – Dennis Lehane

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The Story

In the world of Dennis Lehane‘s Kenzie and Gennero, 12 years have past since Patrick found Amanda McCready and returned her to unfit mother (see Gone Baby Gone). Patrick and Angie are now married and the proud parents of a four year four year old daughter.

Patrick is hoping to get a full time job at a very affluent security company. One night he gets a call the caller says “You found her before, find her again”. The next morning Patrick runs into Amanda’s Aunt Beatrice who apologizes for the previous night’s late call and then tells Patrick that Amanda, now a straight A student at a Boston prep school and a chance to go to Harvard or Yale, has been missing for three weeks and no one cares!

Soon Patrick is sucked back into the world he hoped he’d left behind including drugs and the Russian Mafia. But Patrick has to find Amanda to put the past behind him, the past that haunts him everyday because he did the legally right thing that was actually the wrong thing. Finding Amanda now could help to set things right!

My Thoughts

I really enjoy the characters of this series and Lehane’s writing overall. The pages of this book just flew by last night and like most of his stories there are enough twists to keep you guessing as to what’s going on! As with every Lehane book. It’s a great read! So read it now and then compare it to the movie sequel which is bound to come!