Jim's (drneutron's) Pile o' Books, Stack 3

I'm Jim, 63, husband of 40 (yes, 40!) years, father of a son gainfully employed creating our robot overlords, who reads pretty much anything. We're in central Maryland with roots in Louisiana. I like to read (obviously), cook, trail bike ride/kayak with mrsdrneutron, and want to learn to fly fish and sail. There's probably bourbon somewhere in there too. Of course, LT is a big time sink, but mrsdrneutron seems to have come to terms with my LT addiction...

1. The Albino's Secret by Michael Moorcock and Mark Hodder
2. Gun Girl and the Tall Guy by Maryka Biaggio
3. Absolutely on Music by Haruki Murakami
4. The Ministry of Time by Kaliane Bradley
5. This Way Up: When Maps Go Wrong (And Why It Matters) by Map Men
6. The Society of Unknowable Objects: A Fantastical Novel about Secret Societies and Magical Objects by Gareth Brown
7. The Keep by F. Paul Wilson

8. Between Two Rivers: Ancient Mesopotamia and the Birth of History by Moudhy Al-Rashid
9. What Stalks the Deep by T. Kingfisher
10. How to Survive a Horror Story by Mallory Arnold
11. The Breath of the Gods: The History and Future of the Wind by Simon Winchester
12. Fatal Castle: A Modern Day Siege Warfare Thriller by David Boito
13. Reborn by F. Paul Wilson
14. Swallowing the Muskellunge by Lawrence P. O'Brien
15. The Librarians by Sherry Thomas
16. Jack: Secret Histories by F. Paul Wilson
17. Angels & Demons by Dan Brown
18. Water Mirror Echo: Bruce Lee and the Making of Asian America by Jeff Chang
19. Jack: Secret Circles by F. Paul Wilson

20. The Monsters We Make: Murder, Obsession, and the Rise of Criminal Profiling by Rachel Corbett
21. Uprooted by Naomi Novik
22. Jaws by Peter Benchley
23. America, América: A New History of the New World by Greg Grandin
24. Godzilla’s Monsterpiece Theatre by Tom Scioli
25. The Bewitching by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
26. The Laws of Thought: The Quest for a Mathematical Theory of the Mind by Tom Griffiths
27. Marble Hall Murders by Anthony Horowitz
28. Anathem by Neal Stephenson
29. Jack: Secret Vengeance by F. Paul Wilson
30. The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown
31. Impostor: An Alexander Gregory Thriller by LJ Ross

Total Books: 36

Author Gender
Male: 26 (68%)
Female: 11 (29%)
Nonbinary: 1 (3%)

Author Status
Living: 38 (100%)
Dead: 0 (0%)

Publication Medium
Hardback: 6 (17%)
Trade: 4 (11%)
Mass Market: 2 (6%)
eBook: 24 (67%)

Category
Fiction: 26 (72%)
Nonfiction: 10 (28%)

Source
Library: 25 (69%)
Mine: 11 (31%)

ARC: 3
Re-Read: 2
Series: 13
Group Read: 7

Update Time!



32. Antihero: An Orphan X Novel by Gregg Hurwitz

Back again for number 11, Orphan X is still learning to deal with people while rescuing a kidnapped woman. The usual highly enjoyable action!



33. Cold City: A Repairman Jack Novel by F. Paul Wilson

Jack's moved to New York and making all those connections that show up in the later books. This one's the first in a trilogy that forms a complete arc, so will get to the next two pretty soon.

If you haven't joined in our reread of the Secret History of the World series, please do! They're boatloads of fun.



34. The Righteous Mind: Why Good People Are Divided by Politics and Religion by Jonathan Haidt

Heard about this one from a podcast I listen to called The Rest is Science. It's a bit older - published in 2012 - attempt at explaining from moral philosophy the divide between America's right- and left-wing parties. It's funny (hmmm, not ha-ha) to read this now and realize that people were trying to grasp this even back then, given that the divide is so much worse now. His analysis is a good one - evolution has driven us to develop six foundations of morality and the differences in conservative versus liberal outlooks are the result in different weightings of the foundations. Which ones are more important form the basis for our political viewpoint, which is driven by a combination of social evolution, genetics, and environment.

Don't know if this is right, but it's plausible, and is an interesting starting point to try to communicate with each other.

35. Petty Lies by Sulmi Bak

Twisty cross between We Need to Talk About Kevin and a cold revenge story, this one's a keeper. Here we're digging into a seriously screwed up family and the people they affect, told in letters to each other. It's an unusual approach, and one that worked very well for me.



36. Wild for Austen: A Rebellious, Subversive, and Untamed Jane by Devoney Looser

A teacher of Jane Austen shows that maybe Jane wasn't the quiet, isolated person her reputation would have us believe.

A nice dip into Austen's work and life, with a couple of chapters at the end with cultural aspects of Jane's "wildness".

Happy new thread, Jim!

Happy New Thread!

Happy new thread, Jim!

Happy new thread, Jim!

Happy new thread, Jim!

Happy new one, Jim :)

Happy new one, Jim

Happy new thread, Jim!

Happy new thread, DocRoc!

happy new thread, Jim!

Happy new thread, Jim!

I may have to check out The Righteous Mind. It sounds interesting even if it is a bit older. It looks like my library has copies.

Happy New Thread!

>6 drneutron: Happy new thread - I've read the first 7 Orphan X books, not sure if I'll continue. I've been considering reading Repairman Jack...

Happy new thread, Jim. Wild for Austen sounds interesting.

>8 Dejah_Thoris:, >9 mahsdad:, >10 quondame:, >11 SirThomas:, >12 ArlieS:, >13 RebaRelishesReading:, >14 jessibud2:, >15 alcottacre:, >16 PaulCranswick:, > 17, >19 SilverWolf28: Thanks, everyone!

>18 atozgrl: I'd be interested in hearing what you think of his ideas.

>20 ChrisG1: Hey, come join our group read!

>21 BLBera: It was fun, a bit light, and she stretched the "wild" a bit much. But I enjoyed it, learned some things about Jane.

Happy New Thread!!

>20 ChrisG1: Yes, as Doc said, come join us reading Jack!

https://www.librarything.com/topic/376695#n9197821

>23 hredwards: Thanks, Harold!

>24 blackdogbooks: By the way, started the next Jack last night - about 1/3 of the way through Dark City.

Adding to the chorus of "Happy new thread"s...

There were 2 BB's in that lineup. The question now is: Will I survive the addition of 2 more books to the gargantuan TBR list?

>27 katiekrug: Thanks, Katie!

>28 benitastrnad: Story of my life... 😀

Happy new thread Jim!

>30 humouress: Thanks, Nina!

Here's the next readathon: https://www.librarything.com/topic/384644

>32 SilverWolf28: Thanks, Silver!

>24 blackdogbooks: Went to the thread & yikes! It looks like a much deeper dive than I anticipated. Where does one start?

>34 ChrisG1: I started with The Keep and am doing the books, but not trying to track down all the short stories and such. You could also just focus on the original Jack books and pick up the rest from context, but that misses some of the fun.

>34 ChrisG1: Wherever you want to start, really. At the beginning.....at the beginning of the adolescent Jack books.....at the young Jack books that the Doc is reading now.....at Legacies.

Happy new thread!

>37 figsfromthistle: Thanks, figs!

>34 ChrisG1: don’t be daunted, Chris. You’ll love anywhere you get started.

Happy new one, Doc!! : )

>39 blackdogbooks: I agree!

>40 Berly: Thanks, Kim!

Happy new thread, Jim! I'm intrigued by the Repairman Jack talk.

>42 Familyhistorian: Thanks, Meg! I'd love for you to join in with the Repairman Jack fun.

>42 Familyhistorian: Absolutely - don't be put off by our nerdy, completist list of all things Jack and Secret History of the World.

https://www.librarything.com/topic/376695#n9197821

A belated Happy New Thread Jim.

A belated Happy New Thread, Jim. I also enjoyed Imposter this year.

>45 johnsimpson: Thanks, John!

>46 vancouverdeb: Thanks, Deborah. I'm interested in reading the next, but looks like it's not on my Overdrive. I'll have to see if there's a hard copy in the public library.

Here's the next readathon: https://www.librarything.com/topic/384773

>48 SilverWolf28: Thanks, Silver!

Happy Friday, Jim and Happy Birthday. Any bourbon lined up for the evening? 🍻

Happy Birthday, Jim - Have a wonderful day!

Well, happy birthday Jim!

>50 msf59: mrsdrneutron got me an Elijah Craig single barrel select - really good!

>51 SirThomas:, >52 humouress: Thanks!

A late happy new thread, Jim, and an only slight late happy birthday! Hope you have a fantastic weekend.

Happy Birthday, Jim!

Is it your birthday? Happy birthday,!

As a gift, I asked The Wayne what bourbons he and his whisky club have enjoyed lately k. He says these are commonly available but not ones you see everywhere:

Mitchers
Eagle Rare
Angel 's Envy
Heaven Hill

It's your birthday? Happy birthday and have a great one!

>53 drneutron: I've yet to try that one - I'm a Woodford Reserve fan

Adding my Happy Birthday, Jim. Have a great year ahead.

>54 bell7: Thanks, Mary! It’s been good, hope yours is too.

>55 quondame: Thanks, Susan!

>56 katiekrug: Those are good ones, for sure. Angel’s Envy is on my list for this year’s trip on the Kentucky Bourbon Trail. I’ve been to Heaven Hill - it was a fun visit.

>57 atozgrl: Thanks!

>58 ChrisG1: One of my faves too. Their distillery is absolutely gorgeous - one of the best so far.

>59 Kristelh: Thanks, Kristel!

Happy birthday, Jim!

Happy Birthday, Jim!

>56 katiekrug: Is that first one meant to be Michter's? My Dad and I used to LOVE the original, back when it was produced in small batches in a distillery in Pennsylvania. That distillery went bankrupt in the late 1980s, and although the name is still out there (now coming from a Kentucky distillery), it ain't the same, whatever their advertising says.

>61 jessibud2: Thanks, Shelley!

>62 laytonwoman3rd: Yeah, Michter’s. I’ve never had the original - I do enjoy the Kentucky version. It would be great if we could do a comparison test!

>63 drneutron: Oh, and it was the sour mash that we loved.

Happy Birthday, Jim. Many happy returns.

Happy Birthday! 🎂

Happy Birthday, DocRoc!

Happy Belated Birthday!!

>65 BLBera:, >66 SilverWolf28:, >67 PaulCranswick:, >68 hredwards: Thanks, everyone!

>62 laytonwoman3rd: - I guess so, from what Jim said. I was typing on my phone as TW spoke. I'm not a whisky/bourbon person...

Lip-smackin' good!

>71 drneutron: Re: Whiskeys - have you read CLANLANDS?!

>72 m.belljackson: New to me, but sounds like it's right up my alley!

Happy belated birthday, Jim!

>74 norabelle414: Thanks, Nora!

Clanlands is the book version of the TV series done by the two men who starred in Outlander. It is fun -- but hokey. Two men on a long term vacation is sort of like a long term frat party. But it is fun to read.

Update Time!



37. Dark City: Repairman Jack: The Early Years by F. Paul Wilson

Middle of the Early Years series, where Jack is becoming Repairman Jack. If you haven't visited our reread thread, please stop by!



38. Work at Sea: The Evolution of Shipboard Technology by Iver P. Cooper

And More!



39. The Iron Garden Sutra by A. D. Sui

Interesting concept that just didn't catch me. Vessel Iris of the Starlight Order performs funeral rites for the dead across the galaxy and guides souls back into the Infinite Light. When he is sent to an ancient generation ship to care for the dead, he finds a team picking through the technology, a mysterious signal trying to connect with his embedded AI, and a murder.

It's intended to be a mix-up of Buddhist thinking, a monk's life, a thriller, and an exploration of how we interact with AI. But it's also pretty slow to start. And the mix of mystery/thriller and meditation on humanity and technology was an odd choice that missed.



40. Dinner with King Tut: How Rogue Archaeologists Are Re-creating the Sights, Sounds, Smells, and Tastes of Lost Civilizations by Sam Kean

Kean visits with experimental archaeologists - people who want to learn about ancient cultures by experiencing them as best we can now. So we get creating stone tools, tanning leather, cooking various foods and drinks, that kind of thing. It's an interesting mix, and I enjoyed seeing these just-out-of-mainstream-archaeology folks and their skills. What was a little odd was Kean's invention of a story in each chapter to try to allow the reader to connect with that culture. It was good, but I'd rather have had more of the experimental work.



There Is No Antimemetics Division: A Novel by qntm

Wow. Just wow. This one blew me away.

Antimemetics are those ideas that exist, but are unknowable. We forget about them right away. They steal our memories. They make paper and electronic documentation disappear. And they generally aren't our friends. So there's a whole Unknown Objects division devoted to tracking them down, researching them, protecting us from them.

But there's been a war going on for much longer than we remember. And we're losing...

>78 drneutron: Hoo boy, that Antimemetics one sounds amazing. Going on the list...

>79 scaifea: It's a mind-bender!

>78 drneutron: With that kind of a review, I'll give it a go. I wasn't expecting to find it on Overdrive but it's there.

>78 drneutron: I just finished Antimemetics as well. Loved it. Like Antimemes themselves, its so hard to describe this book. Just go read it anyway, well worth the time.

Here's the next readathon: https://www.librarything.com/topic/384866

>81 humouress: Great! I hope you like it!

>82 mahsdad: Yep!

>83 SilverWolf28: Thanks, Silver

Hi Jim,
It looks like someone's using LibraryThing for phishing. I got a request for credit card update from a user "LibraryThingSupport"

>85 quondame: - Maybe report to LibraryThing staff. Not sure what Jim can do!

>86 katiekrug: It was late for me. It's been very competently handled.

>87 quondame:, >88 drneutron:, >89 SilverWolf28: Least they could do is post some books first…

Here's the next readathon: https://www.librarything.com/topic/385027

>89 SilverWolf28: Thanks, Silver!

>77 drneutron: Thank you for the book bullet (Work at Sea: The Evolution of Shipboard Technology)

>91 ArlieS: My pleasure!

Here's the next readathon: https://www.librarything.com/topic/385137

Thanks, Silver!

Here's the Fourth of July readathon: https://www.librarything.com/topic/385250

Thanks, Silver!

Can you please edit the title of the Readathon? I forgot to add the dates. It's supposed to be: Fourth of July Readathon - Social Distancing #328 - July 2 - 6

>97 SilverWolf28: Done!

Between work and getting the son married off, I haven’t had a chance to update for a while. So this one’s gonna be big!



42. America’s Most Gothic: Haunted History Stranger than Fiction by Leanna Renee Hieber and Andrea Janes

Mostly a miss for me - the authors take Gothic tropes and expand using stories and lore from the US. A bit too meandering for me.



43. Fear City by F. Paul Wilson

Third and final of the Early Jack years. All threads neatly wrapped up and Jack’s moved into what he becomes as Repairman Jack. I’m thoroughly enjoying this reread!



44. How to Watch Soccer Like a Genius: What Architects, Stuntwomen, Paleoanthropologists, and Computer Scientists Reveal About the World’s Game by Nicholas Greene

A quick dip into football history and fandom to celebrate the start of the World Cup. Fun, but light, look at the game.

45. Shadow Ticket by Thomas Pynchon

I enjoyed Pynchon’s take on Thirties-era noir - his characters and dialog are fantastic. This one’s best imagining you’re in a dark theater watching a classic movie!



46. Devil House by John Darnielle

Darnielle’s experimental novel takes on the true crime genre, how it’s written, why we read it, and whether it can ever really be “true” crime. Not the first to consider these things, but the perspective of a true crime author was a fresh look.



47. Band on the Run: Xenophon and the First Great Mercenary Army's Epic Escape from Persia by Robert L. O’Connell

O’Connell gives the short, but engaging, story of Greek mercenaries left stranded in Persia after hiring onto the wrong contender for the Persian throne, and how they got back home. And how this mercenary army became a significant power in the region as the first “pirate army”. While Xenophon isn’t completely trustworthy, he’s the best we’ve got, and O’Connell’s great at telling his story.



48. A Box Full of Darkness by Simone St. James

St. James really knows how to tell a scary story! Three siblings travel to the family home to understand how their brother disappeared when they were kids. And yeah, this wasn’t a simple disappearance…

Even with distractions at work and home you've still done a lot of reading, Jim! Have a good one!

>101 RebaRelishesReading: Thanks, Reba!

>98 drneutron: Thank you!

Hi, Jim! Happy 4th of July!

I need to get to A Box Full of Darkness. I usually enjoy Simone St. James' scary books!

>104 tymfos: Thanks! Happy 4th!

It was a really good one.

Congrats on getting your son married and still getting some reading done. Happy Independence Day!

Congratulations on your son's wedding. I loved Bleeding Edge and will give this Pynchon a try.

>106 Kristelh:, >107 BLBera: Thanks, Kristel and Beth!

Congratulations on getting the son married off!

Thanks, Nina!

Happy July, Jim. Congrats on your son getting married. Very exciting. How is work going? Keeping busy?

Congrats, Jim! All the best to them!

>111 msf59: Yeah, all the changes going on a NASA are very exciting, but make a lot of work for me as we try to figure out out how we'll fit into things.

>112 jessibud2: Thanks!

Congratulations!!

Thanks!

I found a book at my library that I thought you might find interesting.

H. P. Lovecraft's The Call Of Cthulhu For Beginning Readers by R. J. Ivankovic

It made me giggle, it's Lovecraft in the style of those beginner Dr. Seuss Readers.
I thought it was fun.

>116 hredwards: Oh, I definitely have to get ahold of that!

Here's the next readathon: https://www.librarything.com/topic/385354

Thanks, Silver!