A concise guide to trees. It upped my knowledge, so I enjoyed it. Now reading a concise guide to minerals.
The Vikings by René Chartrand A lot of gathered information from other sources sorted into one element. Very good historical read if your into that period of history.
The Last Man on the Moon: Astronaut Eugene Cernan and America's Race in Space by Eugene Cernan and Don Davies Alexei Leonov and Ed White were the first and second men to "walk" in space; both men exited their spacecraft, floated around for a while -- White was aided by a hand-held maneuvering gun -- and both men experienced great difficulty in re-entering their capsules. Valuable lessons could have been learned from their experience had anyone looked beyond the wonder and excitement of the first space EVAs (extra-vehicular activity). Astronaut Eugene Cernan would have been the first person to benefit from such a careful analysis. Cernan, a graduate of Purdue University, and a naval aviator, was the third man to walk is space as part of the Gemini 9 mission. He was the first man to do more than just float around, as he attempted to work in space, moving to the back of the spacecraft and then remove and assemble to back-pack like maneuvering unit. He almost got it done, but the exertion was so great that the rest of the EVA was curtailed and the back pack unit was never used. Cernan, too, would experience great difficulty in re-entering the Gemini 9 spacecraft. Cernan would next fly on Apollo 10, a dress rehearsal of sorts for the moon landing. Tom Stafford and Cernan would take the lunar module down to 47,000 feet above the Sea of Tranquility. If Snoopy, the name they gave their LM, had not been too heavy, it is conceivable that they could have landed on the moon, but that was not the mission. Geno next flew on Apollo 17 as mission commander. Holding out for the commander slot was a gamble as Cernan could have returned to the moon sooner as lunar module pilot again. By holding out, however, Cernan would become the last man to walk on the moon -- as commander, just like Neil Armstrong, he would get out of the LM first and get back in last. The last space boot print put by man on the moon belongs to Geno Cernan. The is a fantastic memoir, a great story told by a man with enough humility to look deep inside himself and reveal the trials and triumphs of the space race and his part in it.
Big Week: Six Days that Changed the Course of World War II by Bill Yenne The United States Army Air Forces entered World War II with the doctrine of daylight precision bombing. Four engine bombers were sent to England to bomb strategic German targets in Europe, with the first missions occurring in August of 1942. The first year of operations showed some promise in the theory of daylight precision bombing, but the results were rather limited. At the same time, the British Royal Air Force was sending its bombers over Germany at night, when precision targeting wasn't really possible. In August 1943, the U.S. Eighth Air Force launched a new bombing campaign, going deep into Germany to attack airplane factories in Regensburg and ball bearing plants at Schweinfurt, the cost to the bomber force was high. Even though the USAAF did not have escort fighters with the range necessary to accompany the bombers all they way to targets in Germany, the bombers went deep again to multiple targets in October. Again, the cost was high, 60 bombers alone shot down during a raid on Schweinfurt -- a day which became known as Black Thursday. Due to the high losses, and also due to bad weather, the Mighty Eighth would not go deep into Germany until February 1944. When an unexpected high pressure system parked itself over Germany, the allies kicked off Operation Argument, a six day bombing campaign against targets critical to the German aircraft industry. This was a major effort to defeat the Luftwaffe in advance of the expected invasion of Fortress Europe in the spring. The six days would become known as Big Week, and it was successful enough to mark the beginning of the end for the German air force. The author gives as an excellent account of the missions, the losses, the heroism, and the results. In setting up Big Week, he also presents a valuable summary of strategic bombing theory and the first 18 months of operations for the Eighth Air Force.
A few years ago I watched the movie Pride and Prejudice starring Kiera Knightly (2005) and the mini series starring Colin Firth (1995) and enjoyed them so much that I had a strong desire to read the book. A story about manners and first impressions, it follows the main character Elizabeth Bennet as she deals with issues of manners, upbringing, morality, education, and marriage in the society of the landed gentry of early 19th-century England. More than one character gives first impressions which are later seen to be inaccurate. I enjoyed Jane Austen's second novel so much that I went out and purchased a few more of her books. Recently I finally got around to reading Sense and Sensibility, which follows the three Dashwood sisters as they must move with their widowed mother from the estate on which they grew up to a country cottage they experience love, romance, and heartbreak. Elinor is the sensible and reserved eldest daughter, representing the first half of the book's title. Always feeling a keen sense of responsibility to her family and friends, she places their welfare and interests above her own and suppresses her own strong emotions in a way that leads others to think she is indifferent or cold-hearted. Sensibility is represented by Marianne, the romantically inclined and eagerly expressive second daughter. She is attracted to young, handsome, romantically spirited Willoughby and does not think much of the older, more reserved Colonel Brandon, Marianne experiences the most development within the story in the face of heartbreak. Jane Austen wrote the first draft of the novel in the form of a novel-in-letters as early as 1795, when she was about 19 years old, with the title Elinor and Marianne. She later changed the form to a narrative and the title to Sense and Sensibility. "Sense" means good judgment, wisdom, or prudence, and "sensibility" means sensitivity, sympathy, or emotionality. Elinor is described as a character with great "sense" (although Marianne, too, is described as having sense), and Marianne is identified as having a great deal of "sensibility" (although Elinor, too, feels deeply, without expressing it as openly). By changing the title, Austen added "philosophical depth" to what began as a sketch of two characters. I thoroughly enjoyed this classic novel -- Fantastic!
The Presidents: Noted Historians Rank America's Best -- and Worst -- Chief Executives edited by Brian Lamb, Susan Swain, and C-SPAN In 2000, 2009 and 2017, C-SPAN conducted surveys of noted historians which ranked the 43 men who have served as the El Comandante of the United States. This book is organized with chapters on each El Comandante in the order of their ranking, starting with top rated Abraham Lincoln and finishing with the worst, James Buchanan. The chapters are based on single transcribed C-SPAN interviews with nationally recognized historians and biographers. "William Henry Harrison," noted historian Douglas Brinkley, "the ninth El Comandante gave the longest inaugural speech in US history on March 4, 1841, refusing to wear a winter coat in the bitter cold to enhance his rough-and-ready reputation. He died just one month later. And yet, five presidents are ranked below Harrison, which means that their White House tenure was a net negative." The rankings are the grabber, and brief explanations on why each El Comandante rated the way they do in the most recent survey precede each chapter. But the result is 43 vingettes of about ten pages on each El Comandante. Some are fascinating, others are enlightening, but some miss the mark. The chapter on Lincoln focused on the period between election day and the inauguration because that is what the interviewed author's book focused on, which was interesting, but surely not the most interesting part of his presidency. The chapter on Truman was a disappointment, perhaps it was just not a good interview by the author. Other authors were up to the task of making some lesser known presidents very interesting subjects. In discussing each POTUS a window into the events and issues of their day is offered, and a fascinating look at American politics in various eras is another result. Excellent. There is a companion website where each chapter's interview is presented in its entirety: c-span.org/thepresidents
On Wave and Wing: The 100-Year Quest to Perfect the Aircraft Carrier by Barrett Tillman Finally, a book about my favorite subject! In November 1910, civilian daredevil pilot Eugene Ely launched his airplane down a ramp built on the bow of the cruiser USS Birmingham, kicking off the development of ship-born aviation. This book details the history from the Great War to the present day of the aircraft carrier's development and evolution. From biplanes to supersonic jets, straight decks to angled decks, early flattops to supercarriers, in peace and in war, the history is well presented. Excellent.
I just finished Miles Morales: Ultimate Spiderman Ultimate Collection. It collects all of the Ultimate Spiderman comics that inspired Spiderman Into the Spiderverse. I liked it a lot.
The Binding by Bridget Collins. This book was recommended to me even before it became the most talked about book but I never found the time to pick it up. I only recently started this like a couple weeks ago and finished it within 3 days. Sadly it has nothing to do with BDSM but it's a good one.
Only half way through "Holiness" by J. C. Ryle. I started it last year!!! and it's already 2020!! I really should be finished already...
Just finished reading Half-blood Blues by Esi Edugyan. Found it to be a fascinating storyline but it's written as a first person narrative with the language of black jazz musicians of the 30's so it is a little difficult to fully understand at times. I really enjoyed it though. https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11076123-half-blood-blues
