THE ORIGINAL (audiobook) by Brandon Sanderson and Mary Robinette Kowal

 

Published in September of 2020 by Recorded Books.

Read by Julia Whelan.
Duration: 3 hours, 30 minutes.
Unabridged.

Brandon Sanderson is one of the go-to names in science fiction and fantasy in the 21st Century. He has been nominated for or has won just about all of the major awards. Mary Robinette Kowal has similar credentials. Together, they created this audiobook-exclusive novella.

This audiobook clocks in at 3 hours and 30 minutes, but it is an action-packed 3 hours and 30 minutes that takes the listener into an all-too-plausible (mostly) and creepy world.

Mary Robinette Kowal

The Original begins with Holly Winseed waking up in a hospital. She has no idea why she is there and gets very confusing answers from the staff. Soon, she realizes that she is a cloned copy of herself.

Winseed lives in a future filled with nano-technology, including in the human bloodstream. The tiny robots keep people healthy and young. 

It also allows the government to access your mind. Then, they can clone the body and, if things go well, unite the new body with the old mind. This is rarely done, though. The government reserves the right to do this when the original person has committed a heinous crime and needs to be tracked down. The idea is simple - who knows how you think better than you? 

The plot is interesting, but for me the setting was even better. This imagined world takes CGI to another level - enabled by the nano-technology in their bloodstreams. It is well worth your time to listen to this audiobook just for that - the story within their created universe is a bonus.

I rate this audiobook 5 stars out of 5. It can be found on Amazon.com here: THE ORIGINAL (audiobook) by Brandon Sanderson and Mary Robinette Kowal.

HOW to THINK: A SURVIVAL GUIDE for a WORLD at ODDS by Alan Jacobs

 

Published in 2017 by Random House Audio.

Read by P.J. Ochlan.

Duration: 4 hours, 21 minutes.
Unabridged.

Alan Jacobs is a professor and expert on the human mind. This short work is essentially a treatise on how to keep an open mind and not get stuck in a mental rut - meaning not simply rejecting new ideas out of hand. He also addresses the concept of how to reach out to people to make new ideas more appealing to them.

Alan Jacobs

Jacobs fills the book with a lot of anecdotes - they were usually interesting in and of themselves, but not particularly enlightening. For me the last part of that sentence pretty much describes the book. It was pleasant enough but it really didn't teach me anything and a lot of the time I was wondering where the author was going with yet another story.

I rate this audiobook 3 stars out of 5. It can be found on Amazon.com here: HOW to THINK: A SURVIVAL GUIDE for a WORLD at ODDS by Alan Jacobs.

DEATH WITHOUT COMPANY (Longmire #2) (audiobook) by Craig Johnson

 

Originally published in 2006.

Published by Recorded Books in 2007.
Read by George Guidall.
Duration: 9 hours, 48 minutes.

Unabridged

Walt Longmire's mentor as the Sheriff of Absaroka County is Lucian, a long-retired and extra-cranky one-legged man. Lucian lives in an assisted living home and he calls in Walt when a resident passes away. Nursing home residents passing away isn't normally an event that draws a lot of suspicion, but Lucian insists it was murder. Longmire decides to listen to Lucian and soon enough Walt uncovers a lot more than anyone was expecting...

I am coming to the Longmire book series after seeing the entire Longmire TV series. This is technically my third book. I listened to number 3, the first book and now the second book. 

And...I am going to give this series a rest for a while. I liked the interesting characters, but the book has serious pacing issues. As I said, I watched the series. My least favorite part of the series was the sequences when Walt would get visions. This book had way too many visions - they slowed the book and did little for me.

I rate this audiobook 3 stars out of 5. It can be found on Amazon.com here: DEATH WITHOUT COMPANY (Longmire #2) (audiobook) by Craig Johnson.

ANCIENT CIVILIZATIONS of NORTH AMERICA (The Great Courses) by Edwin Barnhart

Published in 2018 by The Great Courses.

Lectures by Edwin Barnhart.
Duration: 12 hours, 19 minutes.
Unabridged.

The idea behind The Great Courses is a simple one - take a college lecture course given by an expert that knows how to give an interesting lecture and package it up as an audiobook that anyone can listen to.

Edwin Barnhart is an archaeologist working out of University of Texas - Austin. This course is the completion of a trilogy of courses on Native American civilizations (South America, Mesoamerica, North America). Barnhart's area of true expertise is Mesoamerica, but he has a wealth of practical experience on digs throughout the Southwest. He also clear has a love for the various mound builder civilizations that arose in North America. 

Barnhart takes both chronological and regional approach to this history. The early history section generally is chronological because it is the most unclear. It is also the most technical section of the book, with long discussions of the pros and cons of various techniques to date artifacts. This part was pretty dry, to be honest.

 Monks Mound at Cahokia, easily the largest mound in North
America and one of the larger pyramids in the world.

The rest of the book moves from one region of the country to the next looking at the distinctive features and accomplishments of the various peoples. That part was very interesting to me. I have been to a few of them (most recently, Cahokia) and took a few notes of some great sites that I had never heard of. 

This is my fourth or fifth Great Courses audiobook. It was the first one where I felt that the presenter was actually presenting for a video course rather than an audio course. I kept thinking that I was missing some slides or visual aides as he was speaking. Turns out, this course is also available on DVD and streaming video. I enjoyed the audio presentation, but it might be better as a video. 

I rate this audiobook 4 stars out of 5. It can be found on Amazon.com here: ANCIENT CIVILIZATIONS of NORTH AMERICA (The Great Courses) by Edwin Barnhart.

THE GIFTS of the JEWS: HOW a TRIBE of DESERT NOMADS CHANGED the WAY EVERYONE THINKS and FEELS (The Hinges of History Series #2) by Thomas Cahill

 

Originally published in 1998 by Nan A. Talese/Anchor Books in 1998.

The Gifts of the Jews is the second book in The Hinges of History Series by Thomas Cahill. It is a series of histories that look at important long term movements in history that helped create Western Civilization. 

I read this book when it was first published and I placed it on my shelf and did not touch it for more than 20 years. Over time, I remembered it as remembered it as a dense tome and continued to keep it on my shelf as more of a trophy to my ability to read through difficult books than for any desire to go back and consult it or even re-read it. That changed when we stuck at home during the pandemic quarantine and we came to realize that our extensive bookshelves were overwhelmed and a purge was in order. This book was "purged" from the shelves, but went in to my to-be-read pile after I leafed though it.

I don't know why I remembered this book as hard to read. Cahill has a real gift for writing. This book was usually interesting (often immensely interesting), easy to read and offered challenging takes on the Old Testament. 

Cahill starts with a look at religious worship and religious belief in ancient Mesopotamia and Egypt. He emphasizes that everything was viewed as an unchanging cycle. This makes sense when you look at nature - the seasons, the lunar cycle, menstrual cycles, the unending cycle of birth and death and more birth and so on. The individual is not particularly important to society (everyone has a place and stays in their place and does what is expected) and the big gods don't particularly care about the individual (sacrifices are done by professionals to the bigger gods). Household gods do care about the individual, but they are limited in power and are prone to capricious behavior. Think about the Greek myths or even the famed literary character Conan the Barbarian who worships Crom - a god who does little to encourage or discourage his followers and mostly just watches over things in a generally disapproving way. 

Cahill asserts that the Old Testament is a change in that pattern. He is not unique in this thought - I have heard it at my church on a pretty regular basis. The argument is that Abraham changes the mold by stepping away from Ur, a Mesopotamian city state at the behest of God. Abraham leaves the faceless masses and becomes a known personality. The cycle stops and instead becomes a timeline following Abraham and his descendants and a relationship between a deity and his people. 

Cahill builds on this theme and shows that, over time, it becomes more than a relationship between a whole people and God and becomes more of relationship between God and individual people in that group (as typified by David).

During the exile in Babylon, the relationship changed again. Judaism had been forced to return to its roots in Mesopotamia and had to come up with a new paradigm or whither away. The temple and its sacrifices were literally gone. 

He dates the book of Ruth as being written in post-exile times (even though it describes pre-kingdom times) and notes that it is a story of regular people trusting in God and doing what is right. Even more importantly, Ruth - the title character - is not even Jewish. It is an effort towards inclusion. One does not have to be a literal child of Abraham to join his people. Judaism is no longer about blood or the location of a temple or even having a temple.

Cahill notes: If their identity as a nation was gone (or at least fundamentally altered), "what more could he possibly want from them? It was in the midst of this conundrum that the unheeded words of the prophets came back to them. God wanted something other than blood and smoke, buildings and citadels. He wanted justice, mercy and humility. He wanted what was invisible. He wanted their hearts - not the outside, but the inside." (p. 226)

I enjoyed this book, but I think Cahill oversold some aspects. There are certainly cycles to Judaism. For example, the Torah is read in worship in a cycle and the annual religious holidays are a cycle. But, maybe I am nitpicking.

There are parts of this book that dragged, especially in the first quarter. But, the rest of it was well worth my time to read. Turns out that I also had the third installment of this series on my shelf so I will be reading it soon. The lesson? Sometimes, it's a good idea to clear off the old book shelves and re-read a book you haven't looked it in a while.

I rate this book 4 stars out of 5. It can be found on Amazon.com here: THE GIFTS of the JEWS: HOW a TRIBE of DESERT NOMADS CHANGED the WAY EVERYONE THINKS and FEELS (The Hinges of History Series #2) by Thomas Cahill.

THE CIVIL WAR REMEMBERED: OFFICIAL NATIONAL PARK SERVICE HANDBOOK by various authors

 

Originally published in 2011 by Eastern National

Eastern National is the publisher of the official books published by the National Park Service. Their books are on display in National Park gift shops in visitor centers across the country. Most are pretty good - I've bought more than my share of them because they are compact volumes, full of great, pertinent illustrations printed on glossy paper and their information is solid. The problem is that the writing is always solid, if not particularly engrossing. 

The Civil War Remembered is an exception that pattern because the authors are historians who are also name brand Civil War authors - some are authors that have hit the top of the non-fiction best seller lists and you don't do that if you write dense prose.

There are 16 essays in this 175 page book. Each one covers a specific topic that makes for a rough narrative telling of the history by exploring themes such as America before the Civil War, what it is was like to serve in the military in the Civil War, how the war changed from a war to only preserve the Union to a war to end slavery in order to preserve the Union, industry in the Civil War, the West in the Civil War and Reconstruction. Some of the big names include James McPherson, Edward L. Ayers and Eric Foner. 

This book would serve as a great introduction to the Civil War for anyone. I was very pleased to see a review on Amazon that said that their college professor used this in class. This volume is that good. 

Highly recommended.

I rate this book 5 stars out of 5. It can be found on Amazon.com here: THE CIVIL WAR REMEMBERED: OFFICIAL NATIONAL PARK SERVICE HANDBOOK.

THE COLD DISH (Longmire #1)(audiobook) by Craig Johnson

 

Originally published in 2004.
Published by Recorded Books in 2007.
Read by George Guidall.
Duration: 13 hours, 17 minutes.
Unabridged.

The Longmire book series is the definition of a successful franchise with 16 novels and a six season television series. I watched the series and I enjoyed it immensely, so I decided to give the books a go.

There are obvious differences in characters (The Ferg is a massive change, for example), but they are not deal-breakers. I prefer to look at them as another interpretation of the characters. 

The main mystery in The Cold Dish was highly adapted for the TV series, so much so that it was basically a whole new mystery.

A few years earlier 4 white high school boys sexually assaulted a fellow student. She was Native American who suffered from fetal alcohol syndrome and didn't really understand what had happened. The trial that followed was rough on the local white and Native American communities and ended with minimal punishments for the boys. 

Now, the boys are being murdered one by one by a sniper using an 1874 Sharps Rifle (or a replica) and Longmire has no shortage of suspects...

So, what did I think?

The story drug from time to time, but the main characters are strong. I am not sure if that is because I know another version of them from the TV show or if they were strong in the novel. Either way, I am going to keep going.

I rate this audiobook 4 stars out of 5.

This book can be found on Amazon.com here: THE COLD DISH by Craig Johnson.