Piers Moore Ede

I might not have discovered this had I not read Ede’s “Kaleidoscope City“, but I’m glad I did. It’s the story of Englishman Ede’s search for “something”. He went — and takes reader — to India, Turkey and to an ayahuasca ceremony. I enjoyed the book, but as I read it I kept wanting to yell at him, “why are you ignoring the spiritual traditions of your own culture!?”.

Eric O’Neill

The FBI knew that Robert Hanssen, an FBI agent near retirement, was working for the Russians. However, to prove it in court they needed to use evidence not gathered from covert sources they wanted to protect. They assigned Eric O’Neill, who had been working with the FBI group tasked with following people, to Hanssen and put them both in a unit whose real and only reason for being was to give O’Neill the chance to spy on his boss.

“Gray Day” is a tense book that, to use a cliche, “reads like a novel”. Given O’Neill’s low, albeit critical, role, it isn’t the full story of Hanssen’s betrayal, but it is a very good read.

Seth Kugel

This is an interesting travel book that suggests that the traveller might have a better time by paying less attention to the Internet and its endless ratings when choosing destinations, lodging, and restaurants.

I enjoyed the book not least because Kugel frames his argument as friendly advice rather than hard-and-fast rules. One thing I will try to remember in my travels: when asking “a local” (a vaguely condescending term that I don’t care for) what to see or where to eat, Kugel suggests not asking him or her not where they think you should go, but where they and their family go.

Rick Atkinson

I enjoyed Atkinson’s “Liberation Trilogy” World War II histories so much that I was eager to get this, the first of a trilogy devoted to the American Revolution. I wasn’t disappointed. This is detailed but readable, full of telling character detail, and an all-around great narrative history.

I was especially struck by the attention the author pays to logistics. For instance, a number of British actions — and their timings — were dictated by the difficulties of supplying armies across an ocean in the age of sail. This is just one example of Atkinson’s ability to explain decisions in terms of the factors that influenced the decision-makers.

I hope the next two volumes in this series aren’t too far off.

Will Gompertz

I love going to art museums. I tend to be most attracted to Medieval and Renaissance art, but over time I’ve become more and more interested in modern art (as opposed to “contemporary” art, which I don’t think I’ll ever care for). This book is an excellent brief overview of modern art and has even opened my eyes a little to abstract art. I learned a lot from it.

Alec Nevela-Lee

Welcome to the golden age of ridiculously long subtitles.

If one enjoys, or, more likely, grew up enjoying classic science fiction, this is worth reading. Nevela-Lee shows how editor Campbell seeded the writers in his pulp stable with story ideas. He also goes into a lot of detail about Hubbard and the murky origins of Scientology. Be warned, though, that if you admire these men your admiration might not survive reading about their relationships and attitudes towards women.