May books

[dantheman23.livejournal.com]

Someday I'll write an entry that isn't my monthly books, I promise ; )

Green River, Running Red
by Ann Rule

Anne Rule has led quite the life. She is a true crime writer who used to wok at the Univeristy of Washington as a psychologist. While she was there, and already writing true crime stuff, she had a partner she worked with; that partner turned out to be Ted Bundy! How weird is that? This book however, is about the Green River Killer, who it turns out she lived about a mile from 0_o So bizarre. The GRK was active when I was a kid, and I remember hearing about him at the time. I also remember when they captured him but hadn't really heard many details. This book tells the whole story of Gary Ridgeway, his victims, and the circumstances surrounding them. Fascinating read. 4/5

One Shot
by Lee Child

Our buddy Jack Reacher is back, this time trying to figure out the truth of an ex-marine sniper who apparently killed several people in a planned shooting. Glad I got into this series, and even though I'm only about halfway through it I'm already getting sad thinking about finishing it. 3.5/5

Angela's Ashes
by Frank McCourt

[Yes, I've joined The Finer Things club from The Office] Wow. This book...I don't know if I can even convey how powerful it is. It's the author's memoir of his childhood and upbringing and it is jaw-dropping. Talk about dirt poor. His parents came to America separately at the beginning of the Great Depression, Frank was born here, then they moved back to Ireland. And if you thought things were tough in the U.S. in the 1930's, Ireland was even worse. I wanted to reach through the book and strangle the father, because whenever he made money (which was rare) he spent every penny on getting drunk at the pub. Just a total alcoholic loser. Not the most uplifting book ever, but an incredible read. Really puts your “Wah, my iPhone won't update to the newest version” first-world problems in perspective.

So Long, and Thanks for all the Fish
by Douglas Adams

Eh, while Hitchhiker's Guide is a classic and something that I should read every few years, the rest of the series isn't nearly as good. It took me weeks to get through this one because I just wasn't into it. It still had some moments, but wasn't nearly as fun or humorous as the original. 3/5

Young Zaphod Plays it Safe
by Douglas Adams

I don't know if I ever read this one before. It's a very short story; Zaphod helps find a crashed ship that has an incredibly dangerous thing aboard that can't ever be allowed to escape. And of course it does, but we never find out exactly who it was (we know it was a person). I didn't get it so I looked it up and apparently it was an allusion to Ronald Reagan! Weird. 3/5

The Hard Way
by Lee Child

This was a really good Reacher book. I liked the mystery, I liked the resolution, I liked the action. This series just gets better and better. 4/5

No Country for Old Men
by Cormac McCarthy

I'd seen this book on all kinds of recommendations and lists so I decided to give it a whirl. When I saw the back cover was comparing it to people like Joyce and Melville I was like “Oh crap...”, but it wasn't that bad. Even after finishing I'm not too sure what I think of it. It's ostensibly about a man who finds a bunch of money from a drug deal gone bad and trying to get away with the money while being chased by a very bad man trying to recover it. But it's not really about that at all; it's more of a “slice of life” look at a group of people with the events as a backdrop. The story itself plays out very oddly, and it isn't necessarily my kind of book, but it was definitely interesting and I'm glad I read it. One of the more peculiar books I've ever read. 3.5/5

Books for May: 7
Books for 2015: 26