I am not a regular reader of the New York Times. In fact, I don’t read a lot of newspapers in general. But at some point or another I signed up for the New York Times Books Update. Normally, I glance at it and end up deleting it without clicking a link. This weekend, however, there seemed to be a number of book reviews on books that I am interested in but haven’t read yet. Being a blogger and all, I thought I would share the links with you.

The first review that caught my eye was Adrian Woolridge’s review of Richard Reeves latest presidential biography PRESIDENT REAGAN: The Triumph of Imagination:

Now Reeves brings a biographical technique that he has honed in two previous books - on Kennedy and Nixon - to the Reagan enigma. The essence of this technique is to focus on the goals that his subjects set for themselves and then immerse the reader in a river of narrative. “I have tried to show what it was like for each of these men to be president,” he explains. This makes for refreshingly nonjudgmental books (though Reeves is clearly no fan of Reagan’s economic policies); it also makes for highly readable ones, with the president’s goals providing a spine but never getting in the way of the unfolding story.

Reeves is unlikely to displace Lou Cannon as the Virgil of Reaganland. He spends too much time reciting the daily headlines; he sometimes loses sight of his central characters in the rush of events; the whole effect is of a story written from a distance rather than with insider’s knowledge. Still, for all these faults, “President Reagan” is a compelling read, fast-paced and scrupulously fair. The account of the Iran-contra affair is particularly gripping. Anybody who is interested in Reagan’s extraordinary presidency needs to reckon with Reeves.

I have been meaning to read more deeply about Reagan, and in fact have a mini-library of Reagan books at home, but haven’t managed to quite get around to it. I read Reeves work on Nixon and I am sure I would enjoy his take on Reagan, even if I didn’t agree with his perspective all the time. I caught Reeves on C-Span this weekend and it certainly sounds like an interesting read.

- Book TV also had a panel discussion of American Vertigo: Traveling America in the Footsteps of Tocqueville, Bernard-Henri Levy’s new book. I didn’t watch the panel so I don’t know what Francis Fukuyama and William Kristol thought of the book, but I am pretty sure Garrison Keeler didn’t care for it. After a rather scathing discussion of the book’s faults, Keeler ends with this:

Thanks, pal. I don’t imagine France collapsing anytime soon either. Thanks for coming. Don’t let the door hit you on the way out. For your next book, tell us about those riots in France, the cars burning in the suburbs of Paris. What was that all about? Were fat people involved?

Reviewing the book for the February 13 issue of National Review, Roger Scruton takes issue with Levy’s focus as well, albeit with a little less outraged tone:

Tocqueville was the scion of an old noble family, and never lost the sense that he was looking down on the modern world from a ledge just above it. Levy is not an aristocrat, but he is the next best thing: a product of Parisian high culture, an ex-’68er, raised in the anti-bourgeois orthodoxies of Sartre and Foucault, and turning rightwards only belatedly, as a result of perceiving the indifference of French leftists towards the crimes committed in the name of their ideas. His preferences in American culture are for Henry Miller over Henry James, Kerouac over Longfellow, Jackson Pollock over Winslow Homer, Charlie Parker over Aaron Copland. His heart is far to the left of his head, and he has retained the Parisian aloofness from la vie quotidienne. He tours America in the spirit of a Levi-Straussian anthropologist, decoding rites in which he would never dream of taking part.

This leads to many amusing encounters and some brilliant commentary. But it does not alter the fact that the principal subject of this book is not America but Bernard-Henri Levy in America. He rejoices in his detachment, offering long lists of impressions, each stamped with his Rimbaudesque self-intoxication, and making the reader constantly aware of his observing presence in every scene that he describes. This can be tiresome; but it has the merit of emphasizing the cultural distance between Levy and his American targets. Even his astutest observations, therefore, somehow deliver only glancing blows. And by the end of the book you are pretty firmly on the side of his victims, who have been raised by his Parisian snobbery to the status of representatives of the human race. This, you begin to see, is what people are like, when they are allowed to do what they want and have the means to do it. And why shouldn’t they?

Given these reviews I think I will skip this one.

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***This is a reoccurring series noting the books I receive in the mail but won’t necessarily get a chance to read***

Here are some books that have come across my desk recently. Fiction first:

- Secret Life of Laszlo, Count Dracula by Roderick Anscombe . St. Martins is bringing out a paperback version of this work that was originally published in 1994. If you like vampire stories this might be one for you. Here is Publishers Weekly on the hardback:

Anscombe, a Harvard Medical School psychiatrist, takes the recent trend toward the humanization of vampires the final step, making the Dracula of his subtle, consuming fiction debut a mortal man. A Hungarian medical student in Paris when he starts this diary in 1866, the inexperienced Laszlo becomes infatuated with a sensual patient at the Salpetriere hospital. Passion turns to fury, bringing the affair to a deadly end, but Laszlo escapes when he is rushed back to Hungary on the death of his elder brother. Now Count Dracula, Laszlo marries his brother’s saintly widow and manages to cling to an ascetic life for 20 years until a local girl reawakens his lethal passions. Protected by his hereditary status and a new role as savior when a typhoid epidemic threatens the village, Laszlo pursues the shadowy connection of sex and violence until it becomes the inescapable union of petite mort and mort , love and murder. His motivations are not psychological banalities but something more mythic–the need for an absolute possession that unites the bestial and the divine. Nor is Laszlo insane: he recognizes the “familiar moral landmarks” and is surprised when he ignores them. Well written with a swift plot and moral and psychological complexity, Anscombe’s novel is an engrossing read all the way through to its macabre climax and ambiguous finale.

- Continuing with the death theme, Carved in Bone deals with the Body Farm - Tennessee’s experimental laboratory devoted to the study of the way human corpses decompose. “The author is actually the writing team of Dr. Bill Bass, the forensic anthropologist who founded the legendary Body Farm and Jon Jefferson, a journalist and filmmaker.” Here is a description from the book’s dust jacket:

A woman’s corpse lies hidden in a cave in the mountains of East Tennessee. Undiscovered for thirty years, her body has been transformed by the cave’s chemistry into a near-perfect mummy — one that discloses an explosive secret to renowned anthropologist Bill Brockton. Dr. Brockton has spent his career surrounded by death and decay at the Body Farm, but even he is baffled by this case unfolding in a unique environment where nothing is quite what it seems.

The surreal setting is Cooke County, a remote mountain community that’s clannish, insular, and distrustful of outsiders. The heartbreaking discovery of the young woman’s corpse reopens old wounds and rekindles feuds dating back decades. The county’s powerful and uncooperative sheriff and his inept deputy threaten to derail Brockton’s investigation altogether. So do Brockton’s other nemeses: his lingering guilt over the death of his wife, and the fury of a medical examiner whom Brockton dares to oppose in court.

Carved in Bone is a richly atmospheric, superbly suspenseful, and magnificently rendered trip into the world of forensic science, the heart of the Appalachian Mountains, and the dark passageways of the human psyche. Full of vivid characters and startling twists and turns, this thrilling novel heralds the debut of a major new voice in crime fiction — and an unforgettable work from the hand of a scientific legend.

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I have an odd relationship to “suburbia” as a place and as a concept. Having grown up mostly in small town environments I find myself in a sort of no man’s land. I am not really a urban type but neither I am I really a country person. I can honestly see myself living in either. I now live in “the city” but in what might be called the old line suburbs of the city. I am within the city limits but I don’t live downtown or in an urban setting per se. My house is a split level ranch and it is in a subdivision. Am I a suburbanite? I don’t seem to fit neatly in any category.

When people attack urban sprawl and the soul deadening nature of “suburbia” I tend to have a negative reaction and jump to defend these type of places. I shop in big block shopping centers that so many decry. But on the other hand I can see the appeal of more close knit communities where you don’t need a car and where real neighborhoods can develop. I understand how easy it is to be disconnected from your community when your everyday activities happen in spread out areas, where everything is car orientated, etc.

Why do I bring this up? I just finished reading Little Children by Tom Perrotta which is viewed by many as a satire on suburban living. But having read it, it didn’t strike me as a satire of suburbia so much as an exploration of the lives of families that happen to live in suburbia. If you take the characters and put them in a more urban setting I don’t see that the issues change so much as the furniture of their lives may change.

It seems to me that what Perrotta captures so exquisitely is the slippery nature of our dreams and desires. All of the characters at some point come to the conclusion that their life has not developed in the way they had hoped and planned. Perrotta captures the tragic and comic results of this realization with insight and humor. Depending on your experience with some of the issues (marriage, adultery, parenting, etc.) you might find the writing cuts too close to the bone or unrelated to your life, but I found Little Children to be an enjoyable and thought provoking look at modern family relations.

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Henry Kisor is the book editor and literary columnist of the Chicago Sun-Times as well as the author of three nonfiction books and two mystery novels. He is also the co-author of one children’s book.

He is the author of What’s That Pig Outdoors: A Memoir of Deafness, Zephyr: Tracking a Dream Across America, and Flight of the Gin Fizz: Midlife at 4,500 Feet.

His most recent books are two mystery novels, A Venture into Murder (2005) and Season’s Revenge (2003).

He has been the book review editor and literary critic of the Chicago Sun-Times since 1978, after five years in the same position with the old Chicago Daily News.

Mr. Kisor was gracious enough to answer my questions on the release of Season’s Revenge, so I thought it would be fun to ask him some questions on the release of his latest mystery. He was again kind enough to reply. The questions and answers are below.

What was the hardest part about writing a sequel?

Keeping the facts and details straight between the two books. I discovered a number of times while writing Venture that I’d unconsciously moved an event or a location to a different place or time from Season’s Revenge. Mystery readers care about this stuff and they have long memories.

What was the most enjoyable?

Discovering what happens to the characters as time goes on. After the first book they became real to me, not just figments of my imagination. Sitting down at the computer every morning to work on the book was like hanging out with old friends. They kept me from feeling lonely. Writing is a very solitary occupation and having imaginary buddies around helps one keep one’s sanity. I found myself talking aloud to them as if they really existed. (This helped with the dialogue, by the way.)

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I recently read two books about the lives of two soldiers in two different armies. The first, Just Another Soldier: A Year on the Ground in Iraq by Jason Hartley, is about a New York National Guardsman who was called up to serve a year in Iraq. The second, Company C: An American’s Life as a Citizen-Soldier in Israel by Haim Watzman, is about an American Jew who emigrated to Israel and served as a reservist in the Israeli Army.

Both authors offer unique experiences and perspectives serving in their respective armies. Hartley is an example of a modern American soldier – he keeps a blog while in training to go to Iraq and then e-mails his friends stories during his deployment in Iraq. Watzman is a religious Jew who is caught between two opposing sides – not just between Palestinian and Israeli Jew, but also between ultraconservative religious Jews and secular Jews.

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In my review of Henry Kisor’s first novel, Season’s Revenge, I noted that the work had the markings of a good mystery series:

I know Mr. Kisor is probably a busy man but I am sure his readers are eagerly awaiting his next book. In my opinion, Steve Martinez - and the folks of Porcupine County - would make a fine central character in an ongoing mystery series.

As it turned out, Kisor fans like me got their wish with the release of A Venture Into Murder which again features Sheriff Deputy Steve Martinez and the folks of Porcupine County Michigan. Once again Kisor mixes interesting characters, a unique setting, and a proclivity for thoughtful rumination into a enjoyable read.

The book seems to reflect the personality of its setting. Despite its close knit and gossipy nature, Upper Peninsula Michigan can be a lonely place; one that offers a lot of time to think. As a result Martinez is prone to ruminations on everything from identity politics, the drug war, and life in the boonies to the joys of being a pilot, home cooked meals, and the love of a good women.

These ruminations slow the pace down at times, but they make for interesting reading. As in Season’s Revenge the clues to the mystery build up slowly. A body washes up on shore, then a hundred year old corpse shows up in the woods, and soon Martinez knows that something fishy is going on in Porcupine County. Kisor weaves in some relationship problems for Martinez and even some local politics. Kisor, like his character Martinez, takes it slow painting the scene and laying the ground work.

It doesn’t take long, however, for things to get interesting. You have a sexed-up suburbanite from Chicago on the prowl, a mysterious boat captain with a past, and bodies being found in the woods. Throw in some possible mob connections and the suspicion of drug trafficking and the tension mounts. Despite its languid start, A Venture into Murder has an action packed climax involving a shootout in an old cooper mine and an airplane/boat chase out on Lake Superior.

Their unique setting and interesting observations/ruminations make Kisor’s mysteries a real treat. I recommend them to anyone who enjoys a good mystery.

For those of you who read this humble blog for the literary content, fear not. Book content is coming soon. I have been reading some interesting books and promise to report on said books practically momentarily. So look for news, views, reviews, and interviews in the coming hours, days, and weeks.

Did I mention the Steelers are going to the Super Bowl?!

The Underdog by Joshua Davis is an odd yet ultimately endearing book. It tells the story of Josh Davis, a “jobless 129-lb data entry clerk.” Josh is like most of us, at least at one point or another in our lives, in that he thinks he is destined for great things. His beauty queen mother installed this in him from a young age. The problem is that Josh is not talented in any of the traditional physical sports that provide a path to youthful fame or achievement. Unlike most of us, however, Josh doesn’t give up so easily.

The book describes the lengths Josh goes to in order to achieve something that will define his life and set him on a clear path to success. He tries arm wrestling, bull fighting, Sumo wrestling, retro running (running backward), and extreme sauna competitions. Josh doesn’t win any of these competitions, but his good nature and determination endear him to people all over the world. Interestingly, by pushing himself in these weird events he also begins to understand himself better and to see what is truly important: his wife and family.

In the end, Josh finds work as a writer for Wired magazine and manages to settle down and fulfill his wife Tara’s three simple requests for their life together: “direct sunlight, a dining room, and a bathtub. ” The story of Josh’s journey is a fascinating glimpse into the quirky part of America that seeks to push the boundaries wherever they find them. It is at turns weird, laugh out loud funny, and endearing in its honesty. I found it an enjoyable and entertaining read.

It is hard to decide what to make of the recently released The Making of the American Conservative Mind: National Review and Its Times by Jeffrey Hart. Is it history, political philosophy, biography, memoir, polemic?

All of the above. Hart - a longtime senior editor at National Review and Professor Emeritus of English at Dartmouth – weaves all of these aspects into the work. The result is a fascinating, thought provoking, and yet in many ways aggravating book.

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If you are interested in canoeing, outdoor adventure, or the North Woods country I recommend Canoeing with the Cree. My in-laws from Northern Minnesota got me the 75th anniversary edition for Christmas and I enjoyed reading this classic.

Originally published in 1935 and written by Eric Sevareid, who went on to fame as a radio and television newsman, the book tells the story of two high school graduates who undertake a 2,500 mile canoe trip from Minneapolis to Hudson Bay. Sevareid, age 17, and his friend Walter C. Port, age 19, pilled their supplies into a used 18 foot canvas canoe and set out on this amazing journey. Sevareid came up with the idea to file reports of their adventure with the Minneapolis Star and convinced the editor to pay them. These reports became the basis for this book and helped get Sevareid started in his journalism career.

Reading Canoeing with the Cree is like stepping back in time. The writing is refreshingly unpretentious and communicates the excitement and innocence of the travelers. It also describes the amazing largely untamed wilderness of the North Woods in the nineteen thirties. One has to be in awe of their courage and determination. Without a radio, motor, or decent maps, and with only the most basic foodstuffs, they traveled 2,2500 miles in fourteen weeks. Reading along you find yourself wishing you could embark on a grand adventure, although maybe a shorter and less dangerous one.

In fact, the trip inspired others to duplicate it:

In May 2005, Scott Miller and Todd Foster embarked upon a 2250-mile historical canoe expedition from Saint Cloud to Hudson Bay. Todd and Scott were inspired to take the trip after reading “Canoeing with the Cree” by Eric Sevareid, a book that recounts Sevareid’s trip with his friend Walter Port along the same route in 1930. 2005 marks the 75th anniversary of Sevareid and Port’s trip. In July, Matt Lutz took over paddling for Todd due to some wrist problems. The expedition made it York Factory on Hudson Bay in late August.

The spirit of adventure is alive and well three quarters of a century later.

If you are looking for something a little different to read, and you enjoy stories about the great outdoors, pick up Canoeing with the Cree. It’s a classic.