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The Athenaeum - Reading updates and Literary Review from the Obsidian Elite (this means you)


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I bought this on my Kindle last night and was up half the night with it. Couldn't put it down. Really great book:

 

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"While it is true you learn with age, the down side is what you often learn is what a damn fool you were before"

Thomas Sowell

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I recently read Sailing to Sarantium, and its followup Lord of Emperors by Guy Gavriel Kay.

 

Like Kay's other works (except Fionavar), it's part historical fiction, part fantasy. This time he has a mosaicist as the main character, set in the world of the Byzantine Empire during the time of Justinian. Thourougly enjoyed these two books. Gonna read A Song for Arbonne next.

 

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Death marching myself through 'A Sword Into Darkness'.  Not even sure when/how I ended up owning this book, but good grief it is tedious.  Sections of Crichton-esque masturbation sessions by the author showing off his research mixed with Honor Harrington really make this an enjoyable read.  

Why has elegance found so little following? Elegance has the disadvantage that hard work is needed to achieve it and a good education to appreciate it. - Edsger Wybe Dijkstra

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  • 2 weeks later...

Now reading:

 

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It's a pretty interesting and seemingly well researched story. I know almost nothing about Sakai but the perspective is interesting.

 

 

Just downloaded this:

 

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67 reviews and 4.8 stars. Must have something going for it. If you have Kindle Unlimited both titles are free on your Kindle. 

"While it is true you learn with age, the down side is what you often learn is what a damn fool you were before"

Thomas Sowell

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I knew Martin "Six Million Dollar Man" Caidin had written some military history / WWII books, but wasn't familiar with that one (apparently largely based on interviews Sakai did with journalist Saito)

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I cannot - yet I must. How do you calculate that? At what point on the graph do "must" and "cannot" meet? Yet I must - but I cannot! ~ Ro-Man

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Sakai passed away 12 years before this was written so you are right it's all from interviews with him and associates. His recollections on the difference between the A5M & the Zero (that part I'm reading now) are really interesting. 

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"While it is true you learn with age, the down side is what you often learn is what a damn fool you were before"

Thomas Sowell

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  • 4 weeks later...

Reading Human Division still, or more like dragging through it. All his episodes tied together feels really disjointed.  Additonally every major character being snarky is getting tiresome. 

Why has elegance found so little following? Elegance has the disadvantage that hard work is needed to achieve it and a good education to appreciate it. - Edsger Wybe Dijkstra

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Now reading this:

 

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Interesting stuff. A lot I didn't know.

 

Also reading this:

 

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It's a (very) basic and 35k' overview. But it's a subject I know very little about and in truth have been pretty dismissive of. More and more I think that would be unwise in the future. 

"While it is true you learn with age, the down side is what you often learn is what a damn fool you were before"

Thomas Sowell

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Sakai passed away 12 years before this was written so you are right it's all from interviews with him and associates. His recollections on the difference between the A5M & the Zero (that part I'm reading now) are really interesting. 

 

 

we read sakai pov on kamikaze.  were an intriguing read as were suggesting the pilots weren't so much dying glorious and honorable deaths for country and emperor as were making a practical choice in attempting to protect family and loved ones knowing full well they didn't have sufficient training and equipment to engage in traditional combat.

 

'course he also were one o' the nanjing massacre deniers, so...

 

HA! Good Fun!

"If there be time to expose through discussion the falsehood and fallacies, to avert the evil by the processes of education, the remedy to be applied is more speech, not enforced silence."Justice Louis Brandeis, Concurring, Whitney v. California, 274 U.S. 357 (1927)

"Im indifferent to almost any murder as long as it doesn't affect me or mine."--Gfted1 (September 30, 2019)

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Just bought it on Kindle. Starting reading tonight. 

"While it is true you learn with age, the down side is what you often learn is what a damn fool you were before"

Thomas Sowell

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FYI... read five chapters of this book last night. It's a good one. Not many eyewitness accounts of combat in Syria. 

"While it is true you learn with age, the down side is what you often learn is what a damn fool you were before"

Thomas Sowell

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Got around to reading Altered Carbon.

 

Interesting to see all the differences to the story and characters compared to the show, recognising where they mashed some together and such.

Was disapointed in how the Hotel AI was handled, it has a much lesser role in the novel than in the series, but ah well.

"Cuius testiculos habeas, habeas cardia et cerebellum."

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  • 2 weeks later...

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Good read. Weirdly enough, it seemed to be at its best when talking about agriculture, a subject that is only loosely related to its central thesis. The chapters about the Soviet Union felt rather superfluous.

 

(It also makes me feel weirdly justified about my loathing of what's held up in the post-Forge indie TTRPG world as "good design", aiming to produce largely the same play experience at every table.)

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"Lulz is not the highest aspiration of art and mankind, no matter what the Encyclopedia Dramatica says."

 

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Finished Lock In. Was ok, I guess, Scalzi could have done so much more with this, as is it is pretty forgettable.

Why has elegance found so little following? Elegance has the disadvantage that hard work is needed to achieve it and a good education to appreciate it. - Edsger Wybe Dijkstra

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  • 3 weeks later...

On to Killing Pablo by Bowden. Have to say Bowden's a bit jingoistic and rolling my eyes at him trying to pass Los Pepes off as a necessary end when I have a feeling that creating and supporting a death squad is going to lead to issues after Escobar's death.

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Why has elegance found so little following? Elegance has the disadvantage that hard work is needed to achieve it and a good education to appreciate it. - Edsger Wybe Dijkstra

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I would have just left a bad review on Amazon... but I guess this is another way to go: https://news.yahoo.com/catholic-priests-burn-harry-potter-books-poland-131950572.html

 

I wonder... should we explain to them that buying a bunch of books just to light them on fire still supports the folks who write and publish those books? Does JK Rowling care what you do with her book AFTER you bought it? She got her royalty not mater what you do!

 

Amusingly enough my method is more likely to keep someone from reading a book you didn't like AND you don't need to sweep up ashes after!

"While it is true you learn with age, the down side is what you often learn is what a damn fool you were before"

Thomas Sowell

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Now reading

 

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"While it is true you learn with age, the down side is what you often learn is what a damn fool you were before"

Thomas Sowell

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