Aug 26

Aug 26 Patrick O'Brian's MASTER AND COMMANDER

What comes across in the pages of this novel is real, palpable, and authentic sounding. Reading about the friendship of Jack Aubrey and physician Maturin, with side references to music, science, medicine, Ireland, the Catalan language, courts martial, outdoor dinner parties disrupted by drunken sailors, and old Barcelona, is as vivid as history can get.

Jul 10

Jul 10 Kerri Sakomoto’s “ONE HUNDRED MILLION HEARTS”

Dennis D. McDonald

Fiction, Pacific War, War, Japan

This novel tells the story of a young Canadian woman who, following the death of her Japanese father, returns to Japan to discover the secrets of their heritage. She finds her father had trained as a Kamikaze pilot during World War II but, to his shame, did not die a glorious death. After the war he returned to Canada where he raised his crippled daughter, never revealing his past.

May 30

May 30 George Orwell's HOMAGE TO CATALONIA

Dennis D. McDonald

Autobiography, History, Non Fiction, War

Reading this book is essential to understanding Orwell since his experiences in the Spanish Civil War had such a profound effect on him. He saw with his own eyes how politicians in remote locations can cause death and destruction in the name of political ideals, ideals which Orwell points out are sometimes little more than an unapologetic quest for power in the name of high ideals.

Sep 14

Sep 14 Walter A. McDougall's THE HEAVENS AND THE EARTH: A POLITICAL HISTORY OF THE SPACE AGE

Dennis D. McDonald

History, Non Fiction, Science, Space Program, War

This 1985 book by Walter A. McDougall is a real eye opener, especially if all you know about the early space program is the famous excerpt from John F. Kennedy’s speech