Monthly Archives: December 2010

Book Log – Newton and the Counterfeiter

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Newton and the Counterfeiter: The Unknown Detective Career of the World’s Greatest Scientist by Thomas Levenson

curt_holman loaned me this; He thought I might be interested since it deals with the era that formed some of the setting for my favorite Neal Stephenson series.

And he was right.

It’s nice to have some non-fictional background info to flesh out Stephenson’s book. Though, on it’s own, the “battle” between Newton and one particular counterfeiter is a fairly thin story.

What story there is is well told, with details of where the information comes from. There’s a pretty good description of the history of money at the time, which I find interesting for some reason I can’t fathom.

I think there’s a play in the history of money and economies. I might be the only one who enjoys it, though. Me and Neal Stephenson. Perhaps we’ll go out for a soda afterwards.

Book Log – The Yiddish Policemen’s Union

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The Yiddish Policemen’s Union by Michael Chabon

The first tip that this was an alternate history fiction was my knowledge of Northern Exposure. I was pretty sure, based on the TV Show, that there was no Jewish territory in Alaska. Because Joel Fleischman would have mentioned it.

I’m pretty embarrassed that that is what tipped me off, but I’m often gullible because I assume there’s a lot of stuff I just don’t know about.

The second tip was when they offhandedly mentioned dropping an atomic bomb on Berlin.

Michael Chabon is a great storyteller. This is ostensibly a mystery novel, but the best mystery novels are those where you don’t care about the mystery, you just enjoy the ride. This is one of those books.

If he ever dove into a topic that lights my fires like cryptography or science or money, Chabon would rank up there with Neal Stephenson.

But hard-boiled Jewish detectives in a mythical Jewish state in Alaska is pretty okay, too.

Book Log – Bartimaeus: The Ring of Solomon

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Bartimaeus: The Ring of Solomon by Jonathan Stroud

I bought this for the Chicago trip we took before Thanksgiving. It’s a prequel of sorts to the Bartimaeus trilogy, taking place during the time of Solomon. Bartimaeus, for the uninitiated, is a sarcastic mid-level djinn, summoned to Earth from the Other Place by magicians.

Like the trilogy, it’s a great read. Even better than the trilogy, I would say, because there’s a lot more Bartimaeus in it, and that character is fun to read.

The other main character is a worthy foil for Bartimaeus, a bad-ass female assassin type with just enough magician training to keep B in check.