Review: They Shoot Canoes, Don't They?

They Shoot Canoes, Don't They? by Patrick F. McManus
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I’m reading my way through Patrick McManus’ books of his articles from sporting magazines, and am nearing the end. “They Shoot Canoes, Don’t They?” is the one for today, and I say that I enjoyed this one quite a bit. There seem to be more of my favorite types of stories here, the ones from the author’s childhood, with his normal cast of characters, and with some new introductions, like the sporting goods store owner and Sneed, the fish and wildlife guy. Favorite of the bunch is a dog story, called Skunk Dog, of course about his dog Strange. McManus’ stories remind me not necessarily of what I and my friends did when we were young, but what we considered doing… Funny, one of his better ones.

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Review: White Fang

White Fang by Jack London
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Having missed reading Jack London in school, I’ve read two recently, with “White Fang” being the third. I enjoyed this story of the choices a wild wolfdog makes as she grows up, learning the ways of the world, and understanding the mean and the friendly. It was also the story of becoming the best by learning, then starting over when things change. I also enjoyed the descriptions of the dog’s pull to master other dogs, yet to be ultimately and willingly mastered by a friendly human. This one felt a little less pertinent than “Call of the Wild” to introspection, but still a wonderful story, with plenty of opportunities to see the morals in the story.

My sister always complains about stories where the dog dies at the end – she hates investing your heart into a story with a guaranteed sad ending. Here’s what I’d tell her: (view spoiler)[ While White Fang doesn’t die in the end, he faces plenty of violence at the hands of wild animals, other dogs, and people. In fact, a lot of the book is about overcoming or better preparing for violent situations. So it’s a rough emotional trip, but with a reasonably happy ending. (hide spoiler)]


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Review: My Grandfather's Son

My Grandfather's Son by Clarence Thomas
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Reading this you appreciate the difficulty Thomas had in rising from his roots to become a Supreme Court justice. Mostly you understand his rise is a rise from poverty, and that he had support of many, especially his first political boss. But key was his drive to better himself and to live the way his family taught him. Worth reading for the truly American story of bootstrapping one’s life.

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Review: The Pigeon Tunnel: Stories from My Life

The Pigeon Tunnel: Stories from My Life by John le Carré
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

While most would probably say the main interest here is Le Carre’s real world spy history, I found the bits about how a well-off writer does his research to be most interesting. Le Carre takes us into his day to day life, sometimes listening in to his conversations at breakfast or seeing the background research questions concerning a hotel. Quite interesting in the chosen detail, but overall not what I was expecting.

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Review: Different: Escaping the Competitive Herd

Different: Escaping the Competitive Herd by Youngme Moon
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Compared to many, if not most popular business books, Moon writes with a style that makes it easy to follow her thoughts and to understand her plentiful examples. I read a lot of business books, and this was refreshingly and enjoyable well written. Surprising? Not so much – you’ve seen much of this before in books and magazine articles.

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Review: The Violin Conspiracy

The Violin Conspiracy by Brendan Slocumb
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I was struck while listening to this audiobook that this story “felt” like “The Queen’s Gambit”. I have a hard time putting my finger on the similarities, but I believe that both books, unlike most fiction books I’ve read, felt skimpy on the sense of place and strong on the action. In remembering both stories, I remember the plot, but, for instance, I can’t picture the places described. I’ve read a few Westerns recently, and this struck me as the opposite of the Westerns I’ve read, with their descriptions of the land being a big part of the package. I enjoyed the story, a kind of a typical young musical genius story (think Miles Teller in Whiplash) with some illustrations of racist behavior harming the story’s hero, as well as some odd thinking by our hero, in this case suggesting a bizarre contract. The impediments overcome appear to be more class related than anything else (view spoiler)[ as the hero’s opponents are mostly friends and family who want to profit at any cost (hide spoiler)]. The mystery aspect here takes a back seat to the story background, the history and the story of the violin.

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Review: Holy Cow!

Holy Cow! by Harry Caray
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I read Carey’s “Holy Cow!” right after reading the book about him read by his long-time on-air partner Steve Stone “Where’s Harry?”. I recommend reading these together. Steve includes many of the same stories as Harry, but they are obviously told from an outsiders perspective. When you read Harry’s story, you understand what Harry wants you to understand about his life. The persona that he built over the years is on display here – Harry being the voice of the fans, Harry partying it up all night, Harry shilling for his friends and his oft-times beer sponsors. Harry also explains his rise through radio in Joliet and Kalamazoo, working there with Paul Harvey. The stories of his early life focus on the drive Caray had to become a sportscaster, and it is a surprisingly motivating story. But overall, you get from Harry that he dedicated himself to broadcasting, above all else including family. But from Stone, you get the sense that there also lurks a genius behind Harry’s rise, and sometimes it is an evil genius, or at least a remarkably self-centered genius. Stone illustrates the reasons behind some of the things that Harry did, things that added to his fame and tenure. Taking Stone’s book along with this book of Harry’s together, you get a much more complex idea of who Harry Caray was, and in my mind that make’s him a much more interesting person.
By the way, Goodreads suggests that the 5 books most similar to “Holy Cow!” are all horror books, four by Stephen King. I’ll need time to process this….


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