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More Books!
Nov. 17th, 2007 06:05 pm16-18) William Stevenson- Spymistress, A Man Called Intrepid, Intrepid's Last Case I went on a WWII espionage kick recently and these are three of the best. Spymistress is the story of Vera Atkins, a Romanian Jew who helped run the SOE during the war. She was a fascinating woman and the biography does justice to her. A Man Called Intrepid/Intrepid's Last Case are the stories of Sir William Stephenson, the Canadian millionaire who ran British intelligence for the western hemisphere during the war. The first is a very good biography, the second was his last wartime case involving the first major Soviet intelligence defector of the new atomic age. This one was not as interesting.
19) Donovan of OSS by Corey Ford. An excellent scholarly biography of Major General William Joseph Donovan, head of the OSS during the war. It's written by someone who knew and respected him, but is not overly fawning. It's also very literary. Highly recommended.
20) Innocent Traitor by Alison Weir. Her first novel, Weir is well-known for her biographies and historical writing of Tudor England. This book is set around the life of Jane Grey, the Nine Day Queen. It's a bit choppy in spots, but well written.
21) The Complete Idiot's Guide to Ultimate Fighting by Rich "Ace" Franklin. The former middleweight champion of the UFC has written a handy introduction to the sport. While there are some minor typos, he does a good job of explaining the what and why of the fights.
22) Opal: A Life of Enchantment, Mystery, and Madness by Katherine Beck. Beck takes on the alleged "nature diary" of Opal Whitely, which was supposedly written in her childhood and was hailed at it's publication in the 1920's as a masterpiece of childish mysticism. Beck is clearly unsympathetic to her subject and did far too much editorializing for my taste. Not recommended.
23) The World is Flat, A Brief History of the Twenty-first Century , version 3.0 by Thomas Friedman. He does a good job of explaining the complex issues of globalization in this follow-up to The Lexus and The Olive Tree, which I'd also recommend to anyone who hates the radical change that's occurred in the last ten years, loves it or wants to hide in the sand. He discusses how technology has changed our world and where it may be going. Highly recommended.
19) Donovan of OSS by Corey Ford. An excellent scholarly biography of Major General William Joseph Donovan, head of the OSS during the war. It's written by someone who knew and respected him, but is not overly fawning. It's also very literary. Highly recommended.
20) Innocent Traitor by Alison Weir. Her first novel, Weir is well-known for her biographies and historical writing of Tudor England. This book is set around the life of Jane Grey, the Nine Day Queen. It's a bit choppy in spots, but well written.
21) The Complete Idiot's Guide to Ultimate Fighting by Rich "Ace" Franklin. The former middleweight champion of the UFC has written a handy introduction to the sport. While there are some minor typos, he does a good job of explaining the what and why of the fights.
22) Opal: A Life of Enchantment, Mystery, and Madness by Katherine Beck. Beck takes on the alleged "nature diary" of Opal Whitely, which was supposedly written in her childhood and was hailed at it's publication in the 1920's as a masterpiece of childish mysticism. Beck is clearly unsympathetic to her subject and did far too much editorializing for my taste. Not recommended.
23) The World is Flat, A Brief History of the Twenty-first Century , version 3.0 by Thomas Friedman. He does a good job of explaining the complex issues of globalization in this follow-up to The Lexus and The Olive Tree, which I'd also recommend to anyone who hates the radical change that's occurred in the last ten years, loves it or wants to hide in the sand. He discusses how technology has changed our world and where it may be going. Highly recommended.
