The Big Question--#42 finished

This is supposed to be a modern day reality/game show book where contestants are asked questions and work their way up on a final contestant. The final contestant then gets 1 question where if answered correctly they win $100 million, if the answer incorrectly they are executed. I actually thought the premise of the book was good and expected it to be interesting. The back cover of the book made it sound like it would be funny. Unfortunately it was neither interesting or funny. Not rotten but not very good either. Oh well, not everything I read is going to be that good.

The characters were many and seemed just slapped together haphazardly. Throw in mob problems, ex-convicts, hooker, redneck, etc it was hard to really care about anyone in the book. Disappointing because the story idea could be a decent one, but this book did not do the idea justice.

This is a book that I received from PBS & will now be listing it on PBS. There are no other copies in the system so hopefully I will be able to mail it off eventually.

Polar Star--#41 finished

A very good book, I really enjoyed it. The author Martin Cruz Smith also wrote Gorky Park, that I had read many years ago--sometime around college. Polar Star is a followup on the investigator from Gorky Park, Renko. Renko was kicked out of the Communist Party and had stayed about one step ahead of the KGB or whichever police type group in the USSR that was after him. He made it to Siberia where he was just trying to get lost for a while and gets on a fishing boat the Polar Star. A murder occurs and he is given the task to investigate what happens.

It is a clever read with several twists and interesting characters. It also gives good insight into the Soviet mindset at the time from the perspective of the different characters. Throw in some spying stuff and it is all good. Like I said, I really enjoyed the book.

It is an older book, published in 1989 and there are already something like 100 copies on PBS so I am not expecting this book to move. No problem though, it will be a good one to post in case I run a deal sometime, it could be the type of book someone would want at that point.

Running

I had run last Monday night 3 miles. I remember though not feeling well going to the park after work and almost forgetting about it but figuring to go for it anyway. Well it was a terrible 3 miles and afterward I went home feeling sick and getting the chills. I felt bad and overall just worn out for the next couple of days as well. Thursday we did Raging Rivers--a water park. We were there from 10:30 am to after 5 pm, a long day, but I actually felt okay there and afterward. Saturday was a busy day of the rescheduled 4th of July parade where I rode my bike with my daughter. I also rode and extra mile and 1/2 or so getting there from home and then rode home afterward with my daughter. So while I didn't run Saturday I did at least do a little low stress biking. Saturday night Thomas had his Challenger baseball All Star game, where he received a medal or his courage as he said--he is on a Wizard of Oz kick & that is what the Lion receives. Thomas was out of sorts there, he really didn't like it, I think the large crowd had something to do with it as well as who knows what else. So I definitely got a good workout in there too.

All of this then brings us to today, Sunday. I went for another run finally. I got 3 miles in, the first at 13:05 and second at 13:50. The third started well, I seemed to get into a rhythm finally but after about .25 I heard a large boom and saw a cloud of black smoke come out of a large engine type thing at a government building and I saw flames from inside a shed right next to that. Well I picked up my pace and went around to the front of this very large building and eventually saw a security guard to notify. I finished that last mile--only needed my last .1 and then drove back around. The fire was out and the guard was calling it in to whoever had to come & check it out. My good deed of the day. Anyway my last mile was something like 12:10--I ran faster than that but also had some time in banging on the fence and then talking to the guard too. I should get a run in at work this week and will see about something after work also.

The Last Oracle--#40 finished

A good adventure spy type book with a lot of good science stuff on nuclear messes in the old Soviet Union, autism, Gypies and the Oracle of Delphi. Overall a good read with a lot of action and interesting stuff going on. Some of the characters and the whole idea of savants seems like a stretch, but I guess close enough of possible to still make it enjoyable.

The end of the book seemed just way too unlikely to happen, almost like the author knew what the end was going to be and pieced something together to get it there. Like I said a little too unlikely, but again not so much that it made the book a negative. A good book and an enjoyable read.

It is on 20 some WL still for PBS so I will get it posted and hopefully mailed out in the next few days. The Au Pairs was requested and I agreed to do a deal and send Adrianne on the Edge with it for 1 credit. I didn't know how long it would take Adrianne to move so I figured why not, I still have way too many books to read and post yet.

Not sure what my next book will be, I have been looking at The Road by Cormac McCarthy but not sure if I want a depressing type book right now. May start it and also grab a 3rd book right away too. Still working on Polar Star, I am down to around 150 pages to go, I had pushed it to the background while trying to finish The Last Oracle these last few days.

By the way, I am now at 40 books read and it is the middle of July. I am very impressed with this for myself. I thought last year reading 30 was great so this is really just amazing for me. I don't know if I will be able to maintain the 6 a month pace but I think 60 for the year is very doable. So I guess that is my goal at this point, that would be 5 a month.

The Au Pairs--#39 finished

Well I finished up the Chic Lit/Teen Girl book. Not a bad read, just light and fluffy. I hope that the portrayal of the characters is over the top, but unfortunately it is probably not. The whole Hampton's lifestyle is something I just cannot imagine or desire to even be part of it. Talking about teen girls nearly finished with high school thrown into the mix, is really scary for a dad of 2 daughters, at least much younger still.

I really have not been impressed with the Chic Lit books I have read this year, they really portray women as desperate to find a man but also really stuck on doing what is popular. I really hope the messages from these books doesn't sink in but is instead enjoyed as the fluff it is. Oh well like I said if not taken seriously at all it is not a bad read. Short chapters and easy to follow characters, like I said an easy read.

It will be getting posted on PBS now, I think there was 1 person who had it on their WL last I checked so maybe I will be able to mail it out this week. If not I think it should still move within the next few weeks.

6.5 miles tonight

I got a nice run in tonight of 6.5 miles at right at 12 minutes a mile pace. I am feeling some of the effects of it now, kind of stiff and sore and generally tired. Felt good though to get a decent long run in, it had been quite a while. This gives me just under 13 miles for the week--not too bad.

I doubt I run tomorrow since it is the 4th of July. I am supposed to ride my bike in a parade with my daughter Rose tomorrow morning, something like 3 or 4 miles, nice and slow. Then the family is all coming over later in the day. Maybe Sunday I will get something in.

Well have a happy and safe 4th of July.

The Death of Common Sense--#38 finished

How the Law is Suffocating America is the secondary title of the book. A good and interesting read about how basically bureaucrats or the bureaucracy needs to be reformed where the bureaucrats actually make decisions rather than just forcing a long and far to complicated process on people. It makes several good points along those lines throughout the book in areas of government contracts, school systems, healthcare, etc.

My only real complaint about the book is that it seemed to be to haphazardly put together. Lots of good examples and stories and quotes but too much jumping around from topic to topic. This made it harder to stay interested in the book because while good points were made it never seemed like a very strong argument was done. Seemed as if too many thoughts or ideas were left half finished, at least to me. Overall though I am glad that I read it. Not sure if I will post this book or not yet, might want to try and pass off to someone else instead, there are already 25 copies or so on PBS so if I post it, it will not be moving for a long while I would guess.

I am still reading Polar Star, only about 80 pages in so I need to spend some more time at this book but I could always say that too. The Au Pairs I am a little over 150 pages in so right around halfway done. It is a quick read and I am looking to finish it up in the next few days hopefully. I have also just started The Last Oracle. This is one of those PBS WL books that has been dropping in the number of people wanting the book so I would like to get it finished and mailed while people still want to read it. These 3 books are probably enough for right now, Au Pairs should be the next one done so maybe after it I will find another to read.