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That makes two compulsively-readable books in a row (after Grisham's The Firm).

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In the past week or two...

Desperate Networks by Bill Carter - The same author who wrote The Late Shift, the great book about the whole Leno/Letterman battle for who would take over the Tonight Show when Carson announced his retirement (later turned into a pretty great HBO TV Movie), as well as the book about the whole Leno vs. Conan fiasco (f**k Leno, btw), this is another solid book of his. This time, it's more of an overarching view of all of the top television networks and the battle for ratings supremacy. Lot's of the key topics/shows covered in detail include Desperate Housewives, Lost, Everybody Loves Raymond, The Office, Friends, Seinfeld, CSI, as well as the rather sudden dominance that was "reality television," with the main shows discussed being American Idol, Survivor, and The Apprentice. Filled with tons of quotes with key people involved, including television executives, actors/actresses, showrunners, newspeople, television hosts, critics, late night talents, etc. A very breezy read (much like his other books), filled with tons of great anecdotes and behind-the-scene details, I'd highly recommend this for anyone interested in the way the television industry operates. And many of the players involved don't hold back, as it seems like the book was written after enough time had passed that feelings were kind of brushed to the wayside...And a lot of the times the players involved don't really take any insults thrown their way that seriously...

Say Nothing: A True Story of Murder and Memory in Northern Ireland by Patrick Radden Keefe - A phenomenal book, one that showed up on numerous top ten lists in 2019, I believe. Not only does the book delve into an unsolved case that occurred during the so-called "Troubles" in Northern Ireland, when relations between Catholics and Protestants (and Irish versus British) were at an all-time low, but it also gives a pretty comprehensive and well-written history of the Troubles, in general, painting a very good overview for anyone who is vaguely familiar with the situation but maybe wants to know more details. The author does a great job of bouncing back and forth between the present and the past, and he does a great job appearing relatively neutral when it comes to the whole conflict, devoting time to both sides in sharing their perspectives on what took place during those turbulent years. And the access to archives and interviews is truly astonishing, and really gives the reader a sense of time and place; like, it really felt like you are there, living in those times the author describes. Filled with shocking details that had previously never been revealed, this is a great read for any True Crime or History buff. Highly recommended.

When the Tea Party Came to Town by Robert Draper - Well...did a great job of infuriating me over the actions taken by various members of the Tea Party. This isn't the proper forum for that, however, so instead I'll say that...well, I guess the author did an admirable job trying to present both sides as being equal (regardless of how difficult or impossible that actually is), and he does get a lot of candid quotes from various people who seem to have no shame. The book feels like a time capsule, in that it really explores those first few months when the Tea Party suddenly burst on the scene and everyone kind of (mostly) pretended to act surprised and even their allies in the House and Senate had to go to extreme lengths just to deal with them. As a political science major, sure, I enjoyed it, as it's a good reference book, and it definitely allows you to at least hear the other side's rhetoric and rationale, regardless of whether or not you agree with it. Not one of my favorite political books, but it was okay.

Silence and Red Dragon are so goood

^^ I liked Red Dragon a LOT, but Silence was even better.

A Very Stable Genius by Philip Rucker and Carol Leonnig - Didn't even realize that one of the co-authors (Carol) also wrote that excellent book about the Secret Service that I recently read, and dammit this book is good. Infuriating at times (for example, when Trump had to have it explained to him exactly what the attack on Pearl Harbor was; apparently, and they have sources and I really don't find it far-fetched, the dude did NOT know exactly what happened at Pearl Harbor and who the antagonist was and why it was such a momentous event in history). Even when you think you've heard it all when it comes to Trump, along comes book after book that just makes you go, "WTF?". But, then again, people still voted for him, and still follow him to this day, which is pretty damn sad. Anyway, if you want to read about what an incredibly "stable genius" Trump is/was, then this book is for you. A really great, enjoyable read, and extremely hard to put down. Maybe part of it was the heat (cause it's effing hot up here in Alberta), but I just couldn't fall asleep and ended up reading this entire tome overnight. It's highly addictive.

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One of the more aptly-titled books that I've read lately. I'm a big Steve Martin fan, but this collection of essays was just excruciating to get through--even though it's very, very short.

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This will be the fifth book by a Mississippi author that I've read this year, and I'm sure that it won't be the last.

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Very different from the other book I read by this author (Vicious). This is more of a fantasy romance ... a type of book I don't typically read, though I thought it was very well done. I liked the central concept, of a woman cursed by a twisted deal with the devil so that she lives forever and is immediately forgotten by every person she ever meets (and is also unable to leave any trace or notes of her existence behind).

On a long car ride listened to the audio book:

Does anyone else get the impression that an audiobook can amplify the flaws in the writing? I loved Ready Player One, but a lot of this just felt cringy to me. It wasn't Wil Wheaton's fault. Maybe I would've had the same response listening to the first book, or maybe this is just that much worse of a book. When I read I can skim by clunky writing or bad dialog, but listening to an unabridged version in the car there's just no escape.

Maybe this would've been better by switching to different main characters (but set in the same world). Rags-to-riches stories are classic. Stories about an asshole rich guy trying to recapture earlier times ... not so much.

Not A Game: The Incredible Rise and Unthinkable Fall of Allen Iverson by Kent Babb - Reread this extremely compelling book for the second or third time and it remains one of my favorite books on basketball and sports in general. It's ultimately a pretty tragic story, as Iverson, despite having all the athleticism in the world, just couldn't help but shoot himself in the foot with great frequency. Clearly a generational player, his impact on the sport of basketball (and fashion in general) cannot be denied, and he was always fun to watch. You just kind of wish he could've managed to have a longer career, and maybe had achieved his dream of winning a championship. I highly recommend this book to sports fans...

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Got to be honest that this book kind of kicked my ass. I did like it and I recognize why it is so highly regarded, but its been a bit since I read something so dense. Something about the lack of punctuation and the way he structured his paragraphs really kept me from finding a good rhythm and I had to go back and re-read several parts. I normally can read a book this size in less than a week, but it took me almost 3 weeks to finish it.

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Boys Among Men: How the Prep-to-Pro Generation Redefined the NBA and Sparked a Basketball Revolution by Jonathan Abrams - A fantastic book about the NBA and about the evolution of the NBA's rules regarding draft eligibility regarding age, and straight-out-of high school players, one-and-done college players, and the idea of mandating that all draftees have to attend college for at least 2 or 3 seasons. It's a really great book that really debates all sides of the issue, interviewing NBA officials including David Stern and Adam Silver, tons of the players who had a wide range of opinions, including many who benefited from coming to the NBA straight out of high school, as well as those who sadly weren't able to make the transition to the pros. Also gets the opinion of agents, college coaches, various apparel reps, and TV NBA analysts. Really interesting to read, with some prominent players focused on such as Garnett, Howard, Kobe, Lebron, Tyson Chandler, Michael Jordan, etc. Kind of a business book about the NBA, and like I said, a great read. Recommended for NBA fans.

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I've had a "someday I'll read it" interest in that book for many years. What did you think of it?

I enjoyed it. WWI has always been a bit of a blind spot in my historical reading, so there was a lot of info that I didnt know. It heavily focuses on the lead up to the start of the conflict and the beginning months, and perspectives from all the various participants.

I did the audio version, and found it a good listen.

Thoughts? I much preferred it over the next-most-recent, MORE BETTER DEALS. A return to form, but not quite up to the greatness of THE THICKET or FREEZER BURN.

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