Books reviews, current events, and other musings

Here's the electic collection of novels, besides Quicksilver, that I've read over the last several months.

John Grisham's The Brethren was very weak, even as an airplane book. It centers around three incarcerated judges, who are pulling off a scam from behind bars. I was curious about what the "wickedly brilliant extortion scam," as the back cover describes it, would be, but it turns out to be rather uninspired. The character development of the judges was so lousy that I didn't bother to keep their identities straight. The other storyline involves an unimpressive Republican candidate, backed by certain hidden interests, campaigning for President by arguing that the US needed to double defense spending in order to protect itself. Though he did anticipate W, Grisham has a very simplistic view of politics. Unfortunately, The Brethren lacks the intricate legal maneuvering that has been the only redeeming virtue of his other books. Plus, in the lame culmination of the underlying conflict, both sides basically got what they wanted. The Brethren is a book to avoid, even for Grisham fans.

Henry James was the only author, out of the four discussed in Azar Nafisi's Reading Lolita in Tehran: A Memoir in Books, who I've never read, which inspired me to pick up his novella Daisy Miller. Its main characters are upper-class Americans in late 19th century Switzerland and Italy. Winterbourne, the straight-laced protagonist, has an exceedingly proper relationship with Daisy Miller, a vivacious young woman touring Europe with her mother and younger brother. The exacting mores of the upper crust are a continual undercurrent, with Winterbourne's snobbish aunt disapproving of the perceived improprieties of the Millers. Later on, Daisy become involved with a suave Italian, to the dismay of the higher society of American expatriates. Though the fussiness regarding proper behavior is rather alien to the modern reader, the book was a pleasant, though not particularly dramatic, depiction of a forgotten age.

Cal Cunningham, the central character in John Colapinto's About the Author, is a would-be author who's unable to start the novel he aspires to write. Then Cal's quiet law-student roommate Stewart dies in a bicycle accident, and Cal finds, among Stewart's papers, an unpublished novel that Stewart wrote, based on Cal's own carousing and womanizing. Cal claims authorship of the novel, which he recognizes as a work of genius, and it becomes a massive success. That portion of About the Author is quite entertaining, but the remainder of the book falls flat. Cal contends with living in deceit, a romance under false pretenses, and a blackmail threat. Cal's life spins out of control, following an all-too-familiar fictional pattern. Colapinto just couldn't follow through on the innovative groundwork he begins with.

Jane Smiley's Moo is a parody of academic life, populated by a colorful assortment of professors, students, and administrators at a Midwestern agricultural university. For example, one professor is determining how large a pig could grow if continuously fed, another prof is pursuing his leftist goals, and a third struggles to find the secrets to animal cloning before his grant runs out. Meanwhile, four roommates with diverse backgrounds were adjusting to college life and each other, and the provost's administrative assistant is actually running everything. Moo captures, in exaggerated tones, the petty squabbling, ego conflicts, crises, and eccentricities of academia.

posted by Julian at 8:30PM

So, W made a surprise Thanksgiving visit to troops in Iraq. I don't see it helping the morale of the soldiers; better pay, medical care, and, most signficantly, returning home is what they really want. Still, Bush's main goal was the political gain from the visit. At least Bush entered a warzone once in his life, though he never left the Baghdad airport.

There has been a significant increase in the number of people who aren't affiliated with any organized religion: from 8% of the US population in 1990 to 14% in 2001. It's good that so many people are skeptical of the religious mindset. (from Eschaton)

posted by Julian at 1:30PM

The Gropinator proposed a typical Republican budget.

Schwarzenegger's package includes a broad array of cuts to social services that benefit seniors, the disabled, low-income children and immigrants. His proposal includes cutting welfare payments by 5 percent and restricting a children's health insurance program that Schwarzenegger, as a candidate, wanted to expand.
...
Democratic lawmakers criticized Schwarzenegger's spending cuts, saying they unfairly targeted the poor, elderly and disabled. His plan calls for a $440 million reduction to the Health and Human Services agency, including a 10 percent cut in the reimbursement rate for doctors who care for Medi-Cal patients; a 5 percent cut in cash welfare payments; and limiting drugs for AIDS patients, food stamps and health insurance for low-income children.

Meanwhile, the Republicans are blaming the budget situation on Gray Davis. Of course, had the Republicans been in power for the last few years, they would have cut taxes to match spending levels. When the dot-com bubble burst and the nationwide recession arrived, the budget situation would have been at least as bad as it is now.

Regarding Iraq, even Jay Garner is critical of US policy (from Talking Points Memo).

The retired general who headed the first occupation government in Iraq said Wednesday the United States made major mistakes, including disbanding the Iraqi army, putting too few troops on the ground and failing to explain the goals of the war.
...
Garner admitted he had made key mistakes himself, but also criticized his successor, L. Paul Bremer, for disbanding the Iraqi army which left a large number of Iraqis jobless at a time when manpower was needed for rebuilding.
...
Garner also complained of bad relations between the Pentagon and State Department, saying he didn't learn of a detailed study by Secretary of State Colin Powell for post-war Iraq until just a few weeks before the war began in March.

The former lieutenant general said that after learning of the State Department plan in February he had brought in Tom Warrick, a senior planner at the State Department involved in the study. But Garner said he was forced to fire Warrick by Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld.

Would the occupation have been more successful had Garner received better advice?

I've noticed a lot of Christmas music on the radio, which is strange considering that it's not even Thanksgiving yet. It turns out that 96.5 KOIT is, according to their website, "playing 100 percent Christmas music all the way through Christmas". In protest, I'll replace KOIT, who must have some sort of cozy deal with the retailers, on my car radio settings.

posted by Julian at 9:55PM

I finished Neal Stephenson's Quicksilver a few days ago, and it was a disappointment, far weaker than his earlier books. The story mainly takes place in late 17th century Europe, and includes appearances by the top people in the monarchies and in science: Louis XIV, William of Orange, Isaac Newton, Gottfried Leibniz, and various lesser lights. The protagonists - a member of the Royal Society, a vagabond, and a concubine turned investor turned spy - have various improbable adventures, in which they roam across Europe and interact with various historical figures.

The premise has potential, and Stephenson does provide a glimpse into 17th century life, which he clearly researched thoroughly. However, you can gain much more insight, and encounter much better writing, in other works of history, biography, historical fiction, or science. Most of the narrative comes across as a tiresome shaggy dog tale, rarely holding my attention. I never cared about the plight of the characters, who remained one-dimensional despite the book's 900-page length. The conversations were stilted and rambling, and it was sometimes difficult to keep track of who the minor characters were.

In prior novels, Stephenson was adept at conjuring up new worlds and presenting clever ideas. Those strengths make his novels of science fiction or modern technology worthwhile. However, when his backdrop is the amply discussed Baroque era, Stephenson doesn't have as much to contribute. Weakness in narration, writing style, and character development undermine what he has to say. Portions of Quicksilver were entertaining, but not enough to justifying reading the book.

posted by Julian at 10:35PM