Review 271: Railroaded: The Transcontinentals and the Making of Modern America

Railroaded: The Transcontinentals and the Making of Modern America by Richard White
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

So happy to have finally finished this long, complicated book. I nearly quit reading several times, and did take a long pause here and there through the months, but glad to have persevered and finished reading it.

My rating reflects the convoluted writing style and poor organization of the book. While the topics and major points are made and deserve a full five stars.

This includes: the railroad building that occurred with a fever in the late 1800's were too soon, ahead of demand, extremely poorly done with extensive corruption, and decimated the environment along with the Native Peoples. The extent of the corruption mixed with politics and the economy is amazing. It brought several economic depressions, wiped out the huge buffalo herds and in the end, actually did some social good as well. Railroads were going to be a necessity, but it could have been done in a wholly different manner and the repercussions of this railroad building is still evident today.

I may write more fully my thoughts on this long book, but for now, my initial thoughts on completion just moments ago, will have to leave it here.

June 1, 2021 – Started Reading

June 2, 2021 – 

page 58

 

 8.24% "this will likely take a while....yet not as long as it looks, appendix begins at page 562."

June 4, 2021 – 

page 75

 

 10.65%

June 9, 2021 – 

page 126

 

 17.9%

June 14, 2021 – 

page 151

 

 21.45%

June 17, 2021 – 

page 188

 

 26.7% "on pause for a bit..."

August 2, 2021 – 

page 194

 

 27.56% "picked this back up. started to read it again, albeit slowly"

August 5, 2021 – 

page 220

 

 31.25%

August 6, 2021 – 

page 230

 

 32.67%

August 23, 2021 – 

page 256

 

 36.36%

August 27, 2021 – 

page 302

 

 42.9%

September 1, 2021 – 

page 343

 

 48.72%

September 20, 2021 – 

page 349

 

 49.57%

September 23, 2021 – 

page 441

 

 62.64%

October 19, 2021 – 

page 471

 

 66.9%

October 25, 2021 – 

page 481

 

 68.32%

October 27, 2021 – 

page 517

 

 73.44%

November 1, 2021 – 

page 555

 

 78.84%

November 2, 2021 – 

page 570

 

 80.97%

November 4, 2021 – 

page 591

 

 83.95%

November 8, 2021 – 

page 623

 

 88.49%

November 10, 2021 – 

page 658

 

 93.47% "hoping to finish tomorrow"

November 11, 2021 – Finished Reading

Review 270: The Appalachian Trail

The Appalachian Trail: A Biography by Philip D'Anieri
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The author was not attempting to be comprehensive about the Appalachian Trail, instead the focus is on some of the people that made the trail what it is; from the early conception to development, then the first hikers, particularly thru-hikers. One of the last chapters focused on Bill Bryson since his book (A Walk in the Woods: Rediscovering America on the Appalachian Trail) made a huge impact for the trail. It was a bestseller and many more people came out to hike the trail for themselves. The very last chapter dealt with the author's own experience hiking along the trail, although not a completion thru-hike.

My only experience with this trail is through Bill Bryson, as I live closer to the Pacific Crest Trail, actually have hiked a very small part of that one. And part of this book is missing some of the physical details of the trail. There are a few, but not many and it didn’t make me actually see the trail. Perhaps there are other books that provide more detail.

At times I felt like there was too much backstory to the person’s biography for the chapter, but this is what the author was attempting, biographies for a few of the important people associated with this trail.

Just as I finished this book I noticed in the news an announcement for the oldest person to hike the trail, M.J. Eberhart, an 83-year-old man. A nice coincidence with the timing.

P.S. another aspect I thought was missing was some info or biographies on the trail angels, those people who help out the thru-hikers. No, this was not a complete book.

Thanks to Houghton Mifflin Harcourt/Mariner Books and NetGalley for an uncorrected electronic advance review copy of this book.

Review 269: The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat and Other Clinical Tales

The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat and Other Clinical Tales by Oliver Sacks
My rating: 3 of 5 stars



This book was something I heard about a long while ago, while still in school. From what I remember it made a splash, was popular and became just intriguing to me. It was in the back of my mind to read it someday. Well, decades later now I finally did, and  I'm slightly disappointed.

 This was not my first book by Oliver Sacks and his later books are better written for a lay audience. This one felt like he wasn't sure who would read his book, so half jargon and half not and it doesn't quite work. Let alone the way the clinical tales are told. Also, I don't think the book aged well with some of the language used in the book are with words we don't generally use anymore.

Entirely too short clinical tales mostly just describe the odd symptoms. There are some with the attempt to find out what has gone wrong, and how to fix, but most are short and seem to just say – look at this odd thing that happened to someone. 

Review 268: Her Quiet Revolution

Her Quiet Revolution: A Novel of Martha Hughes Cannon: Frontier Doctor and First Female State Senator by Marianne Monson
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I was looking forward to reading this book, but had such difficulty with the way it was written,  I just can’t seem to get into it and continue the read.  

There is an innocence, for lack of a better word, that seeps throughout this book. (Perhaps simplicity is the better word.) I also found many grammar issues, which hopefully were fixed before publication, but were so glaring to me, that it was distracting. (Certainly my grammar isn’t perfect, but I seem to notice it more with other people’s writing.)

 

The story also had this assumption of deep knowledge of the Mormon religion. There were words and things that I didn’t quite understand what was going on. I suspect the book is written for a particular audience and I am not it. 

Unfortunately, with all these issues I had to stop reading around a quarter of the way in. The struggle was too much for me to get into the story of this woman who sounds like she was amazing. Hopefully this will work better for others.

Please note my rating is based only on the first 25% of the book and consider that with your evaluation.

Thanks to Shadow Mountain Publishing and NetGalley for an uncorrected electronic advance review copy of this book. 

Review 267: Songbirds

Songbirds by Christy Lefteri
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A book inspired by real events, about the women who migrated from poorer countries to ones of wealth, where they work menial jobs and send the money home. Typically the women are leaving behind children and other family, but don’t see a future without a way to make money for education, to get ahead. So they make the unthinkable choice to leave the country, be a mom via internet, and send money home. 

This story is based in Cypress, told between to different voices, of Petra and Yannis. Occasionally between their chapters there is this foreboding interlude that describes among other things a decomposing rabbit. I could have done without that! 

Nisha is missing. She is Petra's maid and caregiver of her child, while Yannis is the tenant in the apartment above who loves Nisha, asked her marry to him the day she went missing.

Petra learns about Nisha while searching for her, realizing she never knew this woman despite her being so enmeshed in Petra's life for ten years. Petra also learns how hidden from life she was with her own child. Nisha came to help Petra shortly before she gave birth, just after her husband died. Petra lives in this perpetual mourning, a shadow of a life for ten years while Nisha raises her daughter.

 

The mystery is the propulsion for the story but it is Nisha and the other women on the island who are the gems of the book. Not entirely an easy read, but a good one.

Thanks to Ballentine and NetGalley for an uncorrected electronic advance review copy of this book.

Although I got an advance eBook copy, I ended up reading via audiobook. The narrator did an excellent job and would recommend this version as well.