Greg Aase

Better The Second Time -

I originally read The Reckoning when it was released in 1987. I was a business major in college, writing a review for the student business magazine. I came from a car-centric family (Dad and grandfather were both mechanics) and I had a decent understanding of the history of Ford. Admittedly, the Nissan-related sections of the book didn't do much for me at the time, but all the dirty laundry aired on the Ford family and management was interesting. It was my first Halberstam book.

I have now read most of the Halberstam catalog, but I thought I would pick up The Reckoning and give it a second look. Some thoughts:

- This is one of Halberstam's better written books. Halberstam is a great writer, but he could get a bit casual in tone and word choice at times. Not here.
-I paid a lot more attention to the Nissan side of the story this time around, given the company's current problems. Frankly, Halberstam did a better job describing the rise of Nissan and the culture of the Japanese car industry than he did discussing the rise and (sort of) fall of Ford. It's a fascinating read to see how this second-tier company making lousy cars rose to be a powerhouse in the industry.
-The Ford section wasn't as good as I remembered it. Halberstam's assertion is that the bean-counters took over the company, which degraded the manufacturing process and drove the innovation out of it. He acknowledges all three of the American manufacturers got lazy in the 60's due to their market dominance, got caught flat footed with the Japanese and the Germans started making and selling better cars, and couldn't pivot fast enough. I would claim the latter is true.

Top notch book for anybody with any interest in automobiles or business history, and a must for Halberstam fans.

Good high level, dirt free run through of the history of Motown. Other reviews note that the research isn't the best or most accurate. Given that I didn't know much about Motown other than the high level dirt (Gaye was tough to deal with, Gordy had a relationship with Diana Ross, member of the Temptations had chemical problems), I can't speak to the accuracy of the finer points. This is a quick, clear read that made me want to know more about the history of this unique company. The book fades after Motown moves to LA in the 70's, which mirrors the company. But the front end of the book is really engaging.

The definitive biography of a very interesting life. The book tails off toward the end - his later work gets a fraction of the attention of his first three films. However, we get a lot more backstory on his little discussed 70's work (Day of the Dolphin, The Fortune, the various Broadway shows) and a better perspective that the 70's were not a completely wasted decade from a creative standpoint. There was a lot of new information here - his secret work on Annie, which could have been the most profitable thing he ever did, was new to me. I enjoyed Mr. Harris' last book - Pictures at a Revolution - and a lot of his thoughtful discussion regarding The Graduate rightfully ends up in this book. I barely put this book down over the course of a week, and I promptly went out and starting watching his movies. Recommended.

Starts a bit slowly, but Farrow's passion for a good story, even if it's his, kicks in a third of the way through. The Lauer portion of the story is a bit of an afterthought, but Weinstein/NBC portion of the book is riveting reading. Farrow's actions helped blow open the #MeToo movement, and Farrow's excellent prose takes the reader along for the crazy, sad ride. He won the Pulitzer for this, and he deserved it.

Kind of a patch job. Starts off strong but fades pretty quickly. Given the speed in which the Trump administration runs, a lot of material in the book is dated (which is so weird).

Better than anticipated. My bar is pretty low with this series since Mills took over. However, this one has an interesting premise, and the twists kept me guessing until the last section of the book. It did possess a bit of a “Mitch Rapp gets dropped into a generic book” vibe, but the story still works. Worth a read.

A thin biography of record business excess. The Audible version is read by the author, which makes it a bit of a rough ride. The man built Columbia Records into a powerhouse in the last 70's and early 80's. It should have been more than what it was.

The first half of the book, which is focused on the Weinstein story, is great. The blow by blow accounts of what was going on around the two reporters is great reading.

The back half of the book, when it pivots and focuses on the Kavanaugh hearings, is a snooze. The authors are essentially along for the ride, and they are struggling to find a place. I set the book down for a while because I just lost interest. If you followed the hearings this is all old news to you.

The Farrow book, even with some of it's problems, is a better read.

This is a return to form from King. There are several standard King themes - children with wisdom and special powers serving the central plot and evil corporations/government agencies. But its not the appearance of familiar King themes that make it a return to form. It's an energy to the writing, and a leanness to the plot, that make it a fun book to read. It's above average King. It's not in the top tier, but it's much better than Sleeping Beauties or than the Bill Hodges trilogy.

I am a loyal Sandford reader. I have been there since the beginning of the Davenport novels many moons ago. The Flowers books started as a nice distraction but now are, to me, more enjoyable than the Davenport books, while I feel like the author is playing out the string.

I will admit a bias to the Flowers book as I am a lifelong Minnesota resident, and I usually know the locations that Flowers visits. This book was a particular hoot, as I am also a U of M graduate and was familiar with the sites where most of the action takes place. This book also contained a pretty good mystery - it wasn't totally clear who the murderer was until about three quarters through the book. I also learned about Faraday pouches to the point where I got one.

There books aren't War and Peace, but they are above average crime thrillers written by a really good writer who seems interested writing about the Flowers character and his world. The stories vary in quality - usually from okay to really good - but they are always a good escapist read. If you are a Sandford/Flowers fan, enjoy this book, because it's above average. If you are new to this series, it may be prudent to head back to the beginning, because a lot of the characters will come and go without background (because the writer assumes you know who they are).

I've read most of the Reacher books. There are varying degrees of good. This is towards the bottom group of the series. The book starts slow and never really hits its stride. Reacher isn't doing superhuman things, but there are just too many plot holes and improbabilities to be really enjoying. I like the series, but the further along it goes, the more hit and miss these books become.

I got into the Spenser series in the 80's - probably the prime time for Parker. He had figured out his (Spenser's) voice, but he wasn't just on auto-pilot (like he was in the later books). This is the first in the series, and it shows. The narrative tries a little too hard to by updated Marlowe, and Spenser is sketched out rather than fully formed. Not a great book but a decent starting point.

Others have stated that the name dropping gets to be a bit much. I agree. There is something for everyone, but lots for the Python fans. Idle is a good writer, but the back half of the book is a bit light on details and a lot heavy on names being dropped. A breezy, fun book.

I've read all the Rapp books. This one is the worst. Mills has done a good job to date with the character, but this turned into an early Tom Clancey novel and not a good one at that. Rapp turned into a minor character in his own book. The whole book seemed like a rush job, with little of the wit or the come-and-go character development that made the originals fun. I hope this is a hiccup in the series and not a sign of things to come.

I sat on this book for a while. From what I heard from all the author's interviews, this was a personal recalling of his awkward youth. I haven't been in the mood to read semi-serious confessions about a weird family. Once I started reading it, I realized I looked at the book in the wrong light. Part of the book is stories about growing up in a unique family. And part of the stories are about the author's awkward youth. Turns out all the stories are hilarious

Mr. Hodgman is a particularly good writer and knows how to tell a good story. The book was a delight. I recommend it.

If done right, these oral histories can be interesting if done right. The SNL one is the gold standard. However, if now done right, and the CAA one is a prime example, it can quickly turn into a mess. This one sits in the middle. I was a fan of the show from the beginning, so this was all interesting to me. If you're a casual fan, this book is going to be too much inside baseball for you.

I read Townsend's massive memoir and thought this would be a breezy memoir that told no tales and kept everything light. After all Pete is the brains, and Roger is the front man with the awesome hair and usually no shirt.

Wrong!

The book was great. It glossed over things, but Roger made no apologies for anything. Pete may be the brains (and Roger is clear about this), but there is no Who today without Daltrey, and I didn't know this.

Roger is very open about his life and is a great storyteller. It's a very much Pete and Roger story. There are Moon stories, but less than I thought there would be. Entwhistle doesn't get much time in the book at all.

It's an above average memoir and in the upper tier of big rock autobiographies. Recommended for casual and serious Who fans.

It's not the best book on the Beatles. It's a great book on the author's relationship with the Beatles. He's a John guy and makes no bones about it, which hampers some of the perspective (especially if you are a Paul person). Sheffield is a good writer and writes with a lot of passion. The book isn't completely factually accurate, so the hard core Beatles will object (I'm a step or two under hard core fan, but even I cringed a few times when Sheffield dropped something that's been well documented at not true). It's an enjoyable read and it does remind you a) how great a band the Beatles were and b) how happy they can make you feel.

He's my senator.....and I'm happy to see that we are getting to see a little more of the real Al Franken, versus the quiet senator we had for his first term. The whole Ted Cruz chapter is worth the price of the book. Recommended - get the audiobook - he reads it and it goes off book a few times.

Pretty light and breezy. Get the audiobook - he reads it and does a great job. Cracks himself up a few times.

I, like many, have read them all. I was skeptical about Mills taking over the series, but there hasn't been much of a drop in overall quality. If anything, there is a consistency in the series now that wasn't always there when Flynn was writing.

Having said that, this book didn't do much for me. The plot wanders, the whole Rapp in disguise thing didn't work for me, and the climax seemed forced and under written. I couldn't see what was going on. The climax lacked any suspense.

The Survivor was above average Rapp...actually one of the best in the series. This one seemed like a placeholder. Fine if you are a fan of the series, but not a good stand alone book or an entry point for the work of Rapp.

Didn't finish it. A really good long piece in a magazine, but it wasn't a book. A lot of padding.

I thought it would be better. It starts off well enough, but Toobin tails the story and the big picture analysis off the further along the books goes. Part of it is Ms. Hearst. It turns out that the pool isn't that deep. Hard to work with something where nothing is there. It also kind of grinds along. I picked it up and put it down several time over the course of a summer.

I thought Legacy of Ashes was a great book. It had a great narrative and was fact filled. For being a non-fiction book it read like a spy thriller. The writer obviously had a great deal of passion for the subject and that energy showed in the prose. Enemies was a really good book. The narrative was also solid, as following Hoover's life provided a solid basis to tell the story of the FBI. I was looking forward to One Man Against the World. I thought Weiner would tackle Nixon' life in the way he went through Hoover's. It doesn't. The exhaustive, thoughtful analysis found in Weiner's two previous books is missing here. The progression through Nixon's life is relatively routine. Supporting characters in Nixon's life come and go without much rhyme or reason. Pat Nixon barely appears. Watergate is discussed for several chapters, but a lot of information has been covered in other places in better detail. The whole book seems rushed.

Making matters worse is that Nixonland was released before this book. Even though that book doesn't get into Watergate, it tells the story of the rise and fall of Richard Nixon in the context of history in a highly superior way. The first two-thirds of this book goes over the same ground as Nixonland, but the latter book does it in a superior manner. I walked away from Nixonland and felt I understood why Nixon did what he did. I didn't get the same feeling with this book.

Really good book, but unless you are very, very wealthy, it will upset you. The book does a good job proving one person, one vote just isn't true in American politics anymore. It actually made me more politically aware and active, especially since many of the people discussed in the book are now active in the current administration.