PERSUADER (Jack Reacher #7 ) by Lee Child

Originally published in 2003.

Note: Lee Child wrote his books out of chronological order. In chronological order, this would be book #10.

This book starts out with a very different sort of introduction. I don't want to spoil it so I will skip ahead a bit.

Reacher is out to get a man who he thought he killed years before. He has some sort of business arrangement with a family with underworld connections in Maine that lives in a castle-like mansion on the coast. Reacher works his way inside the organization and waits for his opportunity. Also, he is on the lookout for a missing DEA agent who is thought to have been kidnapped by the organization and is being held somewhere.

Reacher is not sure who he can trust as he tries to figure out what is really going on...

This story is more complicated than most Reacher stories. The action is ridiculous, as always - but that's one of the reasons you read a Jack Reacher book.

I rate this book 4 stars out of 5. It can be found on Amazon.com here: Persuader by Lee Child.

THE MARROW THIEVES (audiobook) by Cherie Dimaline

Published by Kobo Originals in 2018.
Read by Meegwun Fairweather.
Duration: 7 hours, 11 minutes.
Unabridged.

In The Marrow Thieves, it is the latter half of the 21st century and the world has had a series of literal upheavals. Earthquakes sheared off California, global warming has changed the weather. Droughts occur in former wet spaces and dry places have become swamps. Sea levels have risen and drowned out many cities. Many animal species have died off and others are in severe decline. On top of that, the nations of the world have gone to war and most cities were destroyed, people have fled to the remaining cities. The entire world map has been re-drawn.

In the future there is also another problem. Almost everyone in the world has

The author, Cherie Dimaline.

lost the ability to dream. Everybody except the indigenous population of the Americas - Native Americans. However, their bone marrow can be harvested for a substance that lets other people dream. The government and the Catholic Church have joined together to "recruit" people for this project. That sounds harmless enough in theory, but in practice it means hunting them down, capturing them and taking them off to concentration camps.

Frenchie is a teenager. He and his family fled the city to go north to their people's original homelands. On the way, Frenchie lost everyone in one way or another. Alone, he stumbled into the camp of survivors who were also pushing north. An old woman, a middle-aged man, a smattering of young men and women and a little girl. This is their story.

I liked this book quite a bit. The characters were great and the ups and downs are truly roller coasters for the listener. Meegwun Fairweather did a great job with the reading.

The only problem I had with the book was the reason why the Native American populations were being hunted in the first place. There is no reason giving for almost everyone losing the ability to dream and no explanation for how the government is able to distill a substance from Native Americans, but somehow not able to chemically replicate this substance. This could have been a fatal flaw, but the strength of the characters carried it past this problem.

I rate this audiobook 4 stars out of 5. It can be found on Amazon.com here: THE MARROW THIEVES (audiobook) by Cherie Dimaline.

This book was placed on a massive book ban list in Florida, a place well-known for banning books. Ugh.

SUPERMAN: DAWNBREAKER: DC ICONS (audiobook) by Matt de la Peña

Published by Listening Library in 2019.
Read by Andrew Elden.
Duration: 7 hours, 28 minutes.
Unabridged.

Set in modern America, Matt de la Peña's Superman: Dawnbreaker: DC Icons delivers a traditional Superman origin story with a little bit of a twist. This book follows along the line of the Smallville TV show, with Metropolis being within driving distance of Superman's Kansas hometown instead of basically being a stand-in for New York City.

Big things are going on in Smallville. A tech firm has moved in, bringing in lots of jobs and a new corporate headquarters. They also are buying up farm land. And, a new smaller company has come in as well. Also, LexCorp is sniffing around. Smallville is considering passing a law requiring people suspected of being illegal immigrants (there is a burgeoning Hispanic population who serve as farm workers and work in a meat processing plant) to produce papers on sight and Hispanic men are disappearing.

Clark Kent has always been amazingly strong, but that could be passed off because we all know people that seem to be freakishly strong. But, Clark noticed something was radically different when he played on his Freshman football team. He dominated with an unprecedented number of touchdowns, but decided to quit football when he severely injured a teammate during a practice. 

When this book begins, Clark has no idea that he is not from Earth. His powers are starting to manifest now that he is getting older, often to his dismay, but they are intermittent. So, unlike in most Superman stories, those formidable powers are not dependable - and things are coming to a head in Smallville...

I really liked this audiobook. Matt de la Peña is an experienced YA author and you can tell. DC made a great choice when they chose to hire an experienced author to tell a coming of age story of their most iconic superhero. The story would be a good story if you removed all of the Superhero elements, which is a great place to start.

Andrew Elden did a good job as reader with the voices and the few accents that would be found in Smallville, Kansas.

I rate this audiobook 5 stars out of 5. It can be found on Amazon.com here: SUPERMAN: DAWNBREAKER: DC ICONS by Matt de la Peña.

HARRY POTTER and the SORCERER'S STONE (Harry Potter #1) (audiobook) by J.K. Rowling

Originally published on paper in 1997 by Scholastic.
Originally published as an audiobook in 1999.
Published in 2015 by Pottermore.
Read by Jim Dale.
Duration: 8 hours, 18 minutes.
Unabridged.

Truth time. This was my first time with the book form of Harry Potter. I'd seen the first movie and maybe the second, but never actually read or listened to any of them. This is a big deal for me because I am generally a fan of the wonderful world of nerd stuff. 

I will dispense with the plot stuff since just about everybody, even me, knew the bare outline - orphaned wizard boy with no friends and hated by his relatives that took him in, special magic school, Quidditch, and a creepy bad guy that killed the boy's parents.

So, what did I think?

This book is so adored and so talked up that it couldn't possibly live up to the hype. But, I liked it. I am looking forward to the other books. It is my understanding that they get more complicated and I certainly don't know the plots of the other books (beyond the annual attack by Voldemort).

Jim Dale read the audiobook version I listened to because it was the American version. The British version is read by Stephen Fry. Jim Dale's voices were all solid except for Hermione. She consistently sounded shrill and whiny.

I rate this audiobook 4 stars out of 5. It can be found on Amazon.com here:  HARRY POTTER and the SORCERER'S STONE (Harry Potter #1) (audiobook) by J.K. Rowling.

Note: this entire book series has been on banned book lists multiple times since it was originally published due to complaints from religious conservatives. Check out this website for more info.

I CONTAIN MULTITUDES: THE MICROBES WITHIN US and a GRANDER VIEW of LIFE (audiobook) by Ed Yong

Published by HarperAudio in 2016.
Read by Charlie Anson.
Duration: 9 hours, 52 minutes.
Unabridged.

Ed Yong takes his readers (or, in my case, listener) into the tiny world of microbes in I Contain Multitudes. Traditionally, we think of microbes as tiny invaders that make us sick and, as I sit at home after yet another day of social distancing, it is easy to see it that way.

But, Yong takes us into a more complicated world. A world where microbes actually benefit their larger hosts - where microbes can help produce scents or colors for attracting a mate, help guts break down leaves or nuts and even help their hosts survive poisons. In many cases, these microbes and their hosts co-evolved and have become dependent on one another. They have created their own microbiome.

But, it's not that simple, either. Sometimes the microbes affect their host's behavior - and not in a good way. They can turn insects into virtual zombies, they can make mice hyperactive or depressed. They can even make mice suicidal (there is a microbe that resides in the guts of cats. It makes mice confuse the smell of cat with the smell of a mouse that is ready to mate. The mouse runs to the cat, gets eaten and the microbe is happily deposited in the gut of a cat. )

Yong's real message is that there are no good microbes or bad microbes. There are microbes that are good in some places and horrible in others. Your gut microbes, for example, are usually great, but if you have a leak in your gut, those microbes can kill you - and do it in a hurry.

Yong does explore relatively new ideas, such as the idea that gut microbes can change mental attitude, weight, cravings for certain types of food and more. It is true, but it is also true that it is certainly not as easy as it sounds. Some combinations of microbes work with some people with some foods in some situations. All of these combinations make it tricky.

Also, those probiotic yogurts that are so popular do nothing to help. It's not because they aren't helpful, but that you would have to eat A LOT of yogurt and keep doing it to actually change your gut biome.

I was intrigued by a discussion of the traditional concept of infection and how to avoid it. Turns out, if you use a medicine or a cleaner that kills all microbes, it can allow infection because the proper microbes aren't present to crowd out (or even kill) the microbes we consider dangerous. Also, if you want to build a strong immune system in your kids - get a dog.

This book was full of interesting information. At times, it was tremendously interesting. But, at two different times in the book, I seriously considered quitting the book. It has a slow start and a big lull about a third of the way through. For that reason, I am rating this audibook 4 stars out of 5. It can be found on Amazon.com here: I CONTAIN MULTITUDES: THE MICROBES WITHIN US and a GRANDER VIEW of LIFE (audiobook) by Ed Yong.

FUNNY, YOU DON'T LOOK AUTISTIC (audiobook) by Michael McCreary

Published by Annick Press in 2019.
Read by the author, Michael McCreary.
Duration: 3 hours, 37 minutes.
Unabridged.

Michael McCreary is a pretty unique thing in this world - a stand-up comic who is on the autistic spectrum. He uses the word Asperger's to describe himself in promotional materials.

But, one of McCreary's points in this book and in his shows is that he is not all that unique. People on the autistic spectrum are not necessarily like the Dustin Hoffman character in Rain Man. McCreary cautions his readers not to assume too much and think that everyone is on the autistic spectrum. He has compulsive behaviors that are more than the average person would experience.

McCreary has some genuinely funny moments in Funny, You Don't Look Autistic, but for me I got the most out of this as a teacher. It is not unusual to have students on the spectrum in my classes, and listening to this very self-aware talkative former student talk about his experiences shed a little light on the matter. It's not like I can go up to one of my students and say, "Hey, you're autistic. How's that going for you?"

On the other hand, this memoir felt like it was just too rushed, and that falls right back to McCreary's compulsive behaviors. Once he gets an idea in his head, he pushes forward until he gets it done. I can see him wondering what he could do besides act and perform stand-up and this book idea just popped in his head. After all, comics write books all of the time.

The author, Michael McCreary

The problem is, McCreary isn't even 30 years old. He's not even close to 30 years old. Some of the things that he talks about are interesting and many of his stories would certainly not make the cut or even be considered if a 50 year old Michael McCreary was writing this book. Most are cute, but not compelling. He simply hasn't lived enough of a life to fill a book with compelling stories, even a little 176 page book.

So, in the end, I rate this book 3 stars out of 5. It has its moments, a few funny lines and a tough story towards the end, but it still isn't must-read material. It can be found on Amazon.com here: FUNNY, YOU DON'T LOOK AUTISTIC by Michael McCreary.

Great quote from the book: "Every time a system is changed for the better, it's because of someone saying, 'I have a problem,' loudly enough."

ROANOKE: THE MYSTERY of the LOST COLONY by Lee Miller

Published in 2007 by Scholastic Nonfiction.
Suggested for readers grades 9-12.

I've read my fair share of articles about the lost colony of Roanoke. They all have a similar story line. They tell the story from the colonists' point of view. And why wouldn't you tell it that way? It's a compelling story when it is told that way. Roanoke: The Mystery of the Lost Colony comes at this story differently - it incorporates the court politics back in England and the mixed motivations for creating the coloy in the first place.

If you are not familiar with the story. Roanoke was England's first serious attempt to put a colony in the New World. It originally had a duel purpose. The first was simple enough. Sir Walter Raleigh had legal claim to the land as part of an inheritance, but only if he could establish a permanent colony on it by 1591. It was an immense piece of property, if he could keep it. It would have included all of the North American coast north of Spanish Florida and south of Newfoundland.

The second purpose of the colony was to provide a protected port to allow English ships to attack Spanish galleons full of gold, silver and other riches. The barrier islands of North Carolina looked like a perfect fit.

But, Raleigh was not allowed to supervise the colony because he was required to stay in the Queen's court, at her request (or demand - she was a queen, after all). So, he sent out a military-type expedition in 1585. It failed, but it did offer some valuable information for the next attempt in 1587. 

A painting by John White. 

John White participated in the 1585 venture as the expedition's artist. His paintings and maps fill this book and most are quite beautiful. in 1587, White led the second attempt to start a colony. If you have studied the original English colonies, you will recognize the familiar pattern - the colony struggles with the local environment and the local people, sends for more supplies and more people and will go on to grow and prosper.

Except that Roanoke sent for more supplies and more people but none were sent out to reinforce the colony...

As I alluded to above, most stories of Roanoke spend a lot of time looking at where the missing colonists might have gone but gloss over why the English never sent more supplies and more people. Lee Miller focuses on the intrigue in the Elizabethan Court and how Raleigh was prohibited from sending out relief supplies. I thought this was a fascinating take on the story. It becomes a story of backroom deals, spies, betrayal and desperation.

John White was convinced to leave behind his family in late 1587, including an infant granddaughter, to personally ensure that the relief supplies were delivered and he was stymied at every turn. By the time he returned almost three years later the colony was gone with only a couple of mysterious clues as to where they may have gone. They were never found and England didn't successfully plant a colony until 1607.

I rate this book 5 stars out of 5. It can be found on Amazon.com here: ROANOKE: THE MYSTERY of the LOST COLONY by Lee Miller.