Gravity Collapse » books

Book Report – Africa: A Biography of the Continent

gravitycollapse — Tue, 10 Jun 2003 01:59:28 +0000

Just to give you an idea of how fast I read, I picked up this book [shameless amazon.com link] over two years ago while stuck in O’Hare airport in Chicago (always, always stuck in that freaking airport), en route to Mexico City to visit a friend.

I thought, judging by its thickness and dense subject matter, it would be the perfect thing to wile away the hours of a plane delay. Little did I know that I’d be wiling away minutes on New York subways, or hours sitting on the deck at my parents’ house in Maine.

Anyway, the point is, I finished the book — finally!

This 700-page opus from John Reader, a photojournalist based in Nairobi, Kenya from 1969 to 1979, is extremely well researched and written. What cinches this opinion for me, in comparison to other historical texts I’ve read on various topics, is that Reader seems to keep Africa’s entire history in perspective at all times. He makes references which aren’t necessarily chronological, but make sense in another way.

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Book Report – Among the Thugs

gravitycollapse — Fri, 11 Apr 2003 09:07:09 +0000

I watch English football.

I’m not religious about it or anything, but I find European soccer leagues interesting for basically one reason: their complicated league structure, complete with promotions and relegations, and the pan-national cup matches (my favorite is the UEFA cup, since it initially contains teams from the most countries).

And, so, I watch English football. I sort of root for West Ham United, principally because they have a silly name (in American English) and I envision changing the logo to….well…a big steaming ham (maybe on a plate, maybe not…I haven’t decided). Like I do in pretty much every sport, I just root against the big boys…so…ya know…fuck Manchester United and Arsenal and Chelsea and Liverpool and Newcastle.

Anyway, a guy from the basketball league I play in recommended, upon hearing that I like English soccer, that I read Among the Thugs by Bill Buford [shameless amazon.com link], because it’s both well-written and eye-opening.

He was right on both counts. This is a damned fine book.

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Clash of values

gravitycollapse — Thu, 06 Sep 2001 08:27:46 +0000

I just finished reading two books this week. It generally takes me forever to read a book, but I finished both of these very quickly. (Yes, I commonly read more than one book at a time…I am a Gemini, after all, and prone to boredom.)

Anyway, I think it would be difficult to find two books articulating such opposing values. The first was “Hit Men“, by Fredric Dannen, and the second was, at a friend’s recommendation, “Tuesdays with Morrie” by Mitch Albom.

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