weary as water

every time i blink i have a tiny dream

Tag Archives: 4.5/5

Book 29: Before I Go To Sleep by S.J. Watson

Wow. This book scared the beejesus out of me. It takes a worse case scenario – a woman with amnesia who wakes every morning with no memory of her current or past life – and makes it worse. The woman, Christine, starts keeping a very detailed journal. Every night she write in the journal, and every day she reads the journal from beginning to end. She starts to remember things. And she realizes that her caregiver is not telling her the truth. The ending of the book is spectacular. Highly recommended…unless you’re an amnesiac.

360 pages
4.5/5

Book 24: Ghost in the Wires by Kevin Mitnick

The subtitle of this book is “my adventures as the world’s most wanted hacker” – and adventures is an apt description of Kevin Mitnick’s life. It’s actually a hilarious account of his hacking activities, which were curiosity-driven and not meant to be exploitative. He was (probably still is) a master at social engineering; that is, cold calling someone & pretending he is someone he’s not to get information he’s not supposed to have (usernames, passwords, server names, dialup numbers). When he starts evading the FBI – that’s even more hilarious. It’s not a very technical book…non-geeks won’t have trouble reading it. I’m still working my way through the coded bits at the beginning of each chapter. A puzzle *and* an entertaining book? Awesome.

432 pages
4.5/5

Book 20: The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake by Aimee Bender

I really enjoyed this book. Basically it is about a girl who at the age of twelve discovers she can taste the emotions of people who cook the food she eats. (And since her mother cooks a lot of her food, she has special insight into her mother’s innermost secrets). She eventually fine tunes it, and is able to tell the origin of the ingredients (an organic tomato from a particular farm in california, or a factory in omaha). Her other family members have special gifts, as well. Maybe gifts is the wrong word.

4.5/5
292 pages

Book 23: American Gods by Neil Gaiman

I finished this book moments ago, and thoroughly enjoyed it. I picked up “American Gods” because it was the first “one book one twitter” selection. I enjoyed the modern mythology of how the gods of america were brought here by the people who came to this land (and how the gods weaken as people’s beliefs waver). I liked the meandering philosophy of how america’s holiest places are the man-made roadside attractions. In the midst of it all, the fantastical adventures of a man named Shadow keep the plot moving. This is a very lyrical book and an easy read, and I had very vivid, very dark dreams on the nights that I read it before bed.

As they passed their first signpost for Mount Rushmore, still several hundred miles away, Wednesday grunted. “Now that,” he said, “is a holy place.”
Shadow had thought Wednesday was asleep. He said, “I know it use to be sacred to the Indians.”
“It’s a holy place,” said Wednesday. “That’s the American Way – they need to give people an excuse to come and worship. These days, people can’t just go and see a mountain. Thus, Mister Gutzon Borglum’s tremendous presidential faces. Once they were carved, permission was granted, and now the people drive out in their multitudes to see something in the flesh that they’ve already seen on a thousand postcards.”

457 pages
4.5/5

Book 22: At Home On The Street by Jason Wasserman & Jeffrey Clair


This book, “At Home On The Street” and accompanying film “American Refugees” are an exquisite study of homelessness in Birmingham. Rather than citing facts and figures from other studies, the authors (Jason Wasserman & Jeffrey Clair) spent an enormous amount of time with the homeless; they stayed out on catchout corner, spent a night in the shelter, hung out in urban camps. By doing so they were able to form real friendships with several homeless men, and the book and film show a unique perspective on homelessness.

I first became aware of the project when Jason stopped by Food Not Bombs, an “organization” (I use the term loosely) of folks who believe that food is a right, not a privilege. FNB has provided a free “picnic” to anyone who would like to eat in Birmingham’s southside since 2005…no preaching, no donation necessary, no separation of “giver vs taker” – FNB folks eat the food side by side with anyone else who shows up. FNB is in the book (and the film) but had no direct influence on either.

The book and the film both stand alone, but the film is meant to be a companion to the book. If you get a chance to watch the film, try to read the book first.

Highly recommended.
252 pages
4.5/5

Book 16: Shutter Island by Dennis Lehane

OK, I didn’t intend for 2010 to be the year of the “made-into-a-movie” book, but that’s what is showing up on the kobobooks top ebooks, and that’s what I keep buying. (Side note: I was buying a lot of books on kobobooks because they had coupons! and great deals! but since the great April 1st “agency day”, I haven’t bought any ebooks from anyone).

Now…onto Shutter Island. (Or not. Really it’s a place I’d rather not be.) This book is a good old fashioned thriller with a slight twist that I kinda-sorta-knew-was-gonna-happen-but-didn’t-want-to-believe-was-true. Just the right amount of scary in parts (especially if you’re reading late at night and your partner is working night shift)…and with a great “believable” ending. (I’m looking at you, lovely bones & under the dome). Also highly recommended.

400 pages
4.5/5

Book 2: Little Brother by Cory Doctorow


I’ve been a big fan of BoingBoing for a while, and I’ve put off reading Cory Doctorow’s “Little Brother” for no good reason. The other day I found a great ebook reader (aldiko) for my android phone, and decided to download Little Brother to try it out (for free, completely legally, because that’s how Cory Doctorow rolls).

Little Brother is set in the not-too-distant future, and focuses on a teenage hacker kid who sets out to stop the government from being draconian after a terrorist attack in San Francisco leaves the masses yearning for security. (Aim low, right?). He encounters various aspects of the security-conscious state – “random” security checkpoints, illegal wiretaps, rfid-tracking, and the reasons of those who fight back when their rights are infringed upon.

The book is definitely a young adult novel – but the thing I liked about it was that it explained complex technical concepts very clearly. Encryption techniques play a key role in the book – and the way encryption and the use of public/private keys are explained in the book is wonderful. Definitely a good book to give to a kid who is interested in hacking or a budding free thinker.

Also, I really liked reading books on my phone using aldiko. So much so, that I am looking into getting an e-reader for my upcoming long-ass flight to Japan. Right now the Barnes&Noble Nook is looking pretty good – it is based on the android platform, and allows book lending. (And – most importantly – the battery life lasts for days – unlike my phone).

380 pages
4.5/5