The Three Body Problem by Cixin Liu and translated by Ken Liu [Christmas gift, hardback, Little Shop of Stories]

This was originally recommended by… someone. Curt? Can’t remember. But then President Obama recommended it. And I figured if two totally unrelated sources recommended a book, I should probably listen.

I wasn’t disappointed. I feel like Cixin Liu is a Chinese Neal Stephenson. Lots of interesting sci-fi ideas mixed in with a dose of history… a very enjoyable read. It went pretty quickly.

I don’t know that I’ve ever read a book translated from Chinese, so… a first.

Again, it’s difficult to discuss without spoilers… but the story spans from the Cultural Revolution and its fallout to the “present day”, covering a couple generations and jumping back and forth in time with gradual reveals of what’s “really” going on. Reminiscent of Cryptonomicon.

Good read. Thanks, Obama.

Approval Junkie: Adventures in Caring Too Much by Faith Salie [Hardback, Little Shop of Stories, $27]

I knew Faith Salie a tiny, little bit.

Freshman year at my dream school, and her “safety” school (pg 224), we lived in the same 103 person dorm. We acted together in a video project, where I and two other guys sang (poorly, in my case) a serenade to her about art, or rather how “we have art for [her]”. We are not the heroes of this video, we are the jerks. She plays a being from another plane of existence, or something like that. I played a pizza delivery boy.

I know she took the Early to Bed, Early to Rise adage very seriously, to the chagrin of her suitemates, who were more the opposite and didn’t care much for shushing during Really Deep Conversations That We Have In College.

We once had a very nice conversation in a suite, the topic of which I completely forget.

She transferred to Harvard after freshman year, which I referenced in the dorm yearbook with a joke about “Faith No More”, a band I knew existed but couldn’t point out in a lineup. I stretch for the comedy.

But now she is part of the Golden Era of Female Comedians. Felicia Day, Tina Fey, Amy Poehler, Amy Schumer, Mindy Kaling, Melissa McCarthy, Kristen Wiig, Kate McKinnon, Leslie Jones, etc. etc. etc., many of whom have written memoirs. But not many of them are on Wait, Wait, Don’t Tell Me on NPR, which is her greatest achievement IMHO.

I love these books, and Ms. Salie’s is no exception. Very funny, very readable, and just the right amount of poignant. She’s got plenty of stories worth telling, even at her young age of mid-fortiesish.

I recommend it, even if she disses my alma mater.

Books Read: 46
Week Count: 47
Gotta… catch… up.

The One and Only Ivan by Katherine Applegate [Little Shop of Stories?]

Katherine Applegate is a ridiculously prolific author.

She does not shy away from the dark and the sad. The first part of this book, while mingled with hope and levity, is mostly really sad. It documents various animals living in a mall zoo.

I understand this is based on the real story of a gorilla named Ivan who resided at the Atlanta Zoo.

In short, it tugs at the heartstrings, but is well-written and engaging. This was a book I read to my daughter in the evenings, and she loved it. Even when it was sad.

Mary Poppins by P.L. Travers

Mary Poppins in the book… is kind of a jerk.

It seems the affection of the children is almost entirely based upon the fantastical magic she employs and then completely denies.

Still, very interesting to read when all you know is the movie. I decidedly believe the movie is a great improvement in plot. Plus, music!

The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros [Little Shop of Stories, $11.00]

My son’s 8th grade reading list may prove a fruitful ground for good books. This is a riveting short collection of vignettes about the coming of age of a young hispanic girl. File it under less is more, the author manages to pack a lot of meaning in a page and a half. Both whimsical and touching, this book makes for a nice evening’s read.

And now I can talk intelligently with my son about his homework.

Week 34
Book 33
Having squandered by big lead from the beginning of the year, we have now fallen below the 1:1 parity of books:weeks. No more Bleak House sized books for me!

The Girl in the Spider’s Web: A Lisbeth Salander novel, continuing Stieg Larsson’s Millennium Series Paperback – by David Lagercrantz (Author) [Little Shop of Stories, paperback]

As it goes, the fourth book in the series. I remember reading that he had worked on the fifth book in the series, and possibly the sixth, before he had died. There was all sorts of controversy and rumor, the girlfriend denies there was any further plans for the series.

At any rate, this was an okay continuation. It’s not as good, and no where near enough of the title character Salander. But there’s an evil twin sister of Salander introduced, and it kind of feels like this was a filler novel before getting to the plot Stieg started for the fifth book.

Basically, as good as one has any reason to suspect.

The Monopolists: Obsession, Fury, and the Scandal Behind the World’s Favorite Board Game by Mary Pilon [Little Shop of Stories, $17.00?]

Quite a fascinating piece of non-fiction reporting, recommended by a Little Shop of Stories employee.

Monopoly, like Risk, is one of the games I kind of feel bad about winning. Running everybody else out of business or violently overthrowing a nation doesn’t have the feel-good win of, say, winning a footrace or a basketball game, for some reason.

I guess that feeling has its roots in the true inventor of the game, Lizzie Magie, a turn of the (last) century activist who was trying to advocate for a single-tax system, which (and I’m not really clear on how) would help prevent wealth inequalities.

The rest of the story is full of interesting twists and turns, and a view into a different era, where board games were gaining popularity thanks to the advent of greater leisure time.

Well written and interesting, definitely worth the time.