Books read in 2005
"Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince" by J.K. Rowling (Summer, 2005). HP6 is the best of the series since HP1. Harry is becoming a man, women are of more interest, school of less, and there is much more action outside school grounds. It is as if the author, like the reader, is desirous of winding up the series. Well paced, easy read. Forecasts much of what will be in HP7.
"At the Tomb of the Inflatable Pig: Travels in Paraguay" by John Gimlette (Summer, 2005). Entertaining anecdotes of the author's two visits to Paraguay (80s and recent) interspersed with well researched history of notable figures in Paraguay's past. The early sections emphasize the silly or ridiculous aspects of Paraguayan culture but a balance emerges by the end. Recommended, especially if a relative was a Peace Corps volunteer in Paraguay in the 1960s.
"The Big Picture: The New Logic of Money and Power in Hollywood" by Edward Jay Epstein (Winter, 2005). Described as the "Moneyball" of Hollywood, which is true, the dollars and sense portion takes up little space but makes the biggest impact. People in the business already know 50-80% of this material, but the missing information is fascinating. Epstein explains the interweaving of the studios and the distribution channels, the DVD royalty scam (industry-wide), and the fact that domestic and international box office receipts generate only 20% of a movie's revenue. The sweet spot of Hollywood is content aimed at children with tie-ins to licensable characters and toys. (Disney pioneered the approach.) There is some surplus material but it is easily browsed. Pleasantly short. Highly recommended.
"On the Wing: To the Edge of the Earth with the Peregrine Falcon" by Alan Tennant (Winter, 2005). In the 1980s, the author radio tracks several peregrine falcons north and south in an old Cessna 185 Skywagon. The reader learns a lot about peregrines (cool bird) and the adventures the Cessna encounters as the pilot accommodates the then unknown flight patterns of migrating falcons. Unrelated environmental mumbo-jumbo is tossed in for interest but is not of high quality. The author appears oblivious that he is mistreating his loyal girlfriend, who responds correctly. Apparently Robert Redford is making a movie from this book. Hmm. Mixed recommendation anyway. Perhaps the movie will be better.
"The Known World" by Edward P. Jones (Winter, 2005). A novel about slave-owning Blacks in pre-Civil War Virginia, this is a fine book, deserving of all the attention it has received (Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, National Book Award finalist for fiction.) It is also a good read. Highly recommended.
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