'Going Infinite' by Michael Lewis

Going Infinite, Michael Lewis (4.0)

I found it interesting that the drama following the subject of this book continued to the writer and the book itself. For those not interested in crypto-currency or familiar with the latest fallen wunderkind, Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF), Mr. Lewis started this book as a study of a company and person whose net worth became shockingly large in a very short time. It sounds like a Michael Lewis subject, but the interesting part is that during the writing (as the author followed and researched SBF) the company went bankrupt and SBF was arrested for major mismanagement of funds. I don’t think Mr. Lewis made him appear innocent in his writing, but he did seem to lose his journalistic distance as he struggled to account for why SBF did what he did. Sam reminded me of Rainman – a non-neural-typical person with one strength (math/gaming), no empathy (he had to teach himself how to smile) and zero interest or understanding of how people and businesses work. Bottom line, Sam only cared about the game, nothing else. Would you want someone like that in charge of a company worth billions? Really not surprising that it failed, and he doesn’t think he did anything wrong.

'Remember: The Science of Memory and the Art of Forgetting' by Lisa Genova

Remember: The Science of Memory and the Art of Forgetting, Lisa Genova (4.0)

Parts of this book are very reassuring parts are very frightening. Even given that, I do recommend anyone concerned with memory read it. The author is a neuroscientist and explains how memory works physically and procedurally. Her examples are familiar to us all -at various points in our lives. I particularly appreciated that while our memories are better when we are younger, we also didn’t get as worried when we forgot something as early onset Alzheimer’s was not a concern. She does spend a good portion of the book differentiating between normal aging memory loss and the various forms of dementia. Importantly she also discusses how to improve your memory at any age. 

'Reckoning' by Baron Birtcher

Reckoning, Baron Birtcher (4.0)

I found this story following an Oregon sheriff/rancher in the 1970’s quite engaging. He is smart and thoughtful but struggles from his time in the military. The characters throughout are engaging and feel real. The story is somewhat complicated, which makes it that much more interesting. Birtcher had included land issues, water issues, corruption and murder that will be familiar to those who live in the west. This is the third in the Ty Dawson series and I will have to read the others.

'Trail of the Lost: The Relentless Search to Bring Home the Missing Hikers of the Pacific Coast Trail' by Andrea Lankford

Trail of the Lost: The Relentless Search to Bring Home the Missing Hikers of the Pacific Coast Trail, Andrea Lankford (3.5)

Having hiked in the areas of California near and on the Pacific Coast Trail, I was particularly interested in reading this book which talks about several thru hikers who have gone missing while attempting to hike the PCT. The author, a former Search and Rescue (SAR) professional, does a good job describing the people and environments of the PCT. She follows 3 specific missing hikers and their family’s search for them. Along the way, other missing hikers are discussed. I enjoyed most of the descriptions of the people and understood the difficulties inherent in the searches (based on the basic wilderness aspects). I did get a bit lost on the timelines as the searches were multi-year and the book did not flow chronologically. The jumping around was a distracting. Sadly, resolution was minimal, the book is more about the journey.

'Sold' by Patricia McCormick

Sold, Patricia McCormick (3.0)

I wonder how reading this book would change if you were younger and less jaded? The book is labeled ‘young adult’ and has been on banned book lists. What was happening to the protagonist was painfully obvious for an adult, but I can imagine it would read quite differently as someone more innocent. Taken from her home in the mountains of Nepal, she was told she was going to work as a maid and make money for her family, but obviously she was being lied to along the way. The story was short and compelling, but very painful to read. I never agree to ban a book, but I would caution very young readers as the reality of her journey’s destination could be quite disturbing. The trite ending with a ‘great white hope’ was disappointing.

'The Last Viking: The Life of Roald Amundsen' by Stephen R. Brown

The Last Viking: The Life of Roald Amundsen, Stephen R. Brown (3.5)

I appreciated why this book was written. Apparently, history has been somewhat skewed by the British interpretation of the validity of Amundsen’s adventures, particularly his ‘race’ to the south pole against Scott. While this author obviously goes to much effort to illustrate the many accomplishments of Amundsen, pleasantly the book does come across as being only slightly biased. He uses newspaper reports and some newly translated documents that had not been used previous. An earlier book did attempt to clarify the events of that race, but here Brown fleshes out the rest of Amundsen’s adventures. I was impressed by the degree of preparation he had, mostly in his early and most successful ventures. His respect for the ways of the Inuit were instrumental in his successes. Compared to other books about a particular adventure (e.g. concerning Magellan and Shackleton), this was not quite as compelling. Brown does a good job of supporting Amundsen as possibly the most successful adventurer, but the pace and ‘tell’ as opposed to ‘show’ slowed it down for me.

'The Talented Mr. Ripley' by Patricia Highsmith

The Talented Mr. Ripley, Patricia Highsmith (4.0)

While books often have unlikeable protagonists, it’s rare to actively root against the main character as I found myself doing in this book. That being said, Tom Ripley is a very unique and interesting character and the book is well worth reading. His ability to turn his lies (by repeating them to himself) into what he is determined is the truth is chilling. This is a well written character exposition of a young man on the edge of high society determined to get himself where he belongs, regardless of how it has to be done. Wonderful descriptions of Italy abound as well.  And yes, I did reach back to reread this after reading the homage by Emily Gray Tedrowe. I had forgotten how horrifying the original was!