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  1. #1
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    What Book[s] Are You Currently Reading?

    Thought I'd start an analogous thread to the one about songs...mine is Imperfect Bliss by Susan Fales-Hill. What about you?

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    Once upon a time there were three...[umm never mind]!!!

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    'The Goldfinch' by Donna Tartt, the 'big novel' of 2014, and it's sublime.

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    The Goldfinch drove me nuts for being pretty slow.

    I'm reading Motown: The Sound of Young America by Adam White is it?, with Barney Ales and a forward by Andrew Oldham.

    I'm surprised how few fans on here appeared to read it. It is like a Motown Bible - but it doesn't have any of the crap about group members whining about lead singer and it has none of the gossip. But it has some fairly harsh facts that not all the fans would like to hear. And a lot about Motown's white staff vs. black staff, all presented very matter of factly. And a lot about how crappy it was after Berry went to Los Angeles and how they went through Presidents, some of whom weren't well regarded - like Ewart Abner??

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    Believing in magic-cookie johnson.

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    'The Story of Edgar Sawtell"....http://www.edgarsawtelle.com/. Actually, it's a re-read. One of my favorites. Just finished "Bettyville". 5 big stars for that one.

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    Quote Originally Posted by lakeside View Post
    'The Story of Edgar Sawtell"....http://www.edgarsawtelle.com/. Actually, it's a re-read. One of my favorites. Just finished "Bettyville". 5 big stars for that one.
    A super book

    I thought Oprah was making it into a movie. What happened?

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    I'm Never Write My Memories - Grace Jones

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    Quote Originally Posted by theboyfromxtown View Post
    I'm Never Write My Memories - Grace Jones
    Fantastic! My better half gave it to me for Christmas and I haven't taken the plunge yet. Skimming it was rewarding in and of itself! What do you think of it so far?

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    Quote Originally Posted by sansradio View Post
    Fantastic! My better half gave it to me for Christmas and I haven't taken the plunge yet. Skimming it was rewarding in and of itself! What do you think of it so far?
    It only arrived this morning. I'm checking through it now....but I'm gonna have to save it for break time especially after you said that just skimming through it is rewarding enough!

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    Ok duufuss,for the tenth time...see jane run...opps wrong post!!

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    Finally tackling MARY WELLS by Soulful Detroit's own Peter Benjaminson. Very excited!

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    Quote Originally Posted by sansradio View Post
    Finally tackling MARY WELLS by Soulful Detroit's own Peter Benjaminson. Very excited!
    I really enjoyed that book. A good read. Enjoy!

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    http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/482430.Echoes_of_a_Haunting
    Just finished 'Echoes of a Haunting". Love the paranormal and esp. stories of real haunted houses. Some are ultra sensational and bordering on the ridiculous.....but, this one appears to be the real deal.

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    I'm loving it, lakeside. I'm learning a lot that I didn't know about Ms. Wells. Mr. Benjaminson really outdid himself with this.

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    Today, I started reading a novel entitled Mr. Fox by Helen Oyeyemi. It's about a novelist who creates a character who comes to life, wreaking havoc in his marriage. Interesting stuff!

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    Quote Originally Posted by sansradio View Post
    Today, I started reading a novel entitled Mr. Fox by Helen Oyeyemi. It's about a novelist who creates a character who comes to life, wreaking havoc in his marriage. Interesting stuff!
    I'll have to put that on my reading list. Love Helen's
    work;she's quite an interesting person herself. Nigerian
    descent,born and bred Brit, now living I'm told in Germany. What's Not Yours is Not Yours was a great read...Right now I'm reading A Pure Solar World about
    Sun Ra...

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    Quote Originally Posted by splanky View Post
    I'll have to put that on my reading list. Love Helen's
    work;she's quite an interesting person herself. Nigerian
    descent,born and bred Brit, now living I'm told in Germany. What's Not Yours is Not Yours was a great read...Right now I'm reading A Pure Solar World about
    Sun Ra...
    Mr. Fox is quite the mind-blower, with a lot of convoluted, fanciful twists; I highly recommend it.

    Hadn't heard about this Sun Ra bio. Have you read Space Is the Place by John Szwed? It was published in the '90s; Szwed was my History of Jazz professor.

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    Quote Originally Posted by sansradio View Post
    Mr. Fox is quite the mind-blower, with a lot of convoluted, fanciful twists; I highly recommend it.

    Hadn't heard about this Sun Ra bio. Have you read Space Is the Place by John Szwed? It was published in the '90s; Szwed was my History of Jazz professor.
    Dang, how fortunate for you!...John Szwed's book was fabulous. A Pure Solar World by Paul Youngquist is not strictly a biography per se
    but more about Sun Ra's musical ideas and approaches. In fact Paul
    cites Szwed's book as the definitive bio on Ra and I agree with him.
    I wish some of our classic soul artists bios were as well researched
    and written...I have to read Mr Fox...BTW, here's a link about Paul's
    book, real quick. I'm sure you can find better ones...
    https://utpress.utexas.edu/books/you...re-solar-world

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    Quote Originally Posted by splanky View Post
    Dang, how fortunate for you!...John Szwed's book was fabulous. A Pure Solar World by Paul Youngquist is not strictly a biography per se
    but more about Sun Ra's musical ideas and approaches. In fact Paul
    cites Szwed's book as the definitive bio on Ra and I agree with him.
    I wish some of our classic soul artists bios were as well researched
    and written...I have to read Mr Fox...BTW, here's a link about Paul's
    book, real quick. I'm sure you can find better ones...
    https://utpress.utexas.edu/books/you...re-solar-world
    Excellent! Much obliged. This looks like a must. I'm very interested in Afrofuturism as a concept.

    Have you had the opportunity to read Szwed's recent Billie Holiday book? He manages a fresh approach to Lady that I didn't think was possible, given the boatloads of Holiday scholarship over the years. Professor Szwed's a really personable guy as well; he was one of my favorite instructors.
    Last edited by sansradio; 05-24-2017 at 09:09 PM.

  22. #22
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    Yes, sans, I thoroughly enjoyed reading Szwed's book on Billie. As a
    rule I read musicians and singers bios and auto-bios all year round and
    for some artists I'll read every take I come across. Billie, Coltrane, Louie, Miles and James Brown are all in that club for me. The recent bio
    of James Brown did something most authors overlooked, actually
    going to the people who knew JB personaly. Novel idea or what?....

  23. #23
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    Quote Originally Posted by splanky View Post
    Yes, sans, I thoroughly enjoyed reading Szwed's book on Billie. As a
    rule I read musicians and singers bios and auto-bios all year round and
    for some artists I'll read every take I come across. Billie, Coltrane, Louie, Miles and James Brown are all in that club for me. The recent bio
    of James Brown did something most authors overlooked, actually
    going to the people who knew JB personaly. Novel idea or what?....
    HA! Are you referring to Kill 'Em and Leave?

  24. #24
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    MCC "Laws of Cricket"

  25. #25
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    Quote Originally Posted by sansradio View Post
    HA! Are you referring to Kill 'Em and Leave?
    Oh yes, that's the one. The James McBride book. Forgot the title for a
    minute. This getting old thing can be a pain in the butt sometimes...

  26. #26
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    Ha! Just started The Promise: President Obama, Year One by Jonathan Alter. A bittersweet read in today's climate if there ever was one.

  27. #27
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    And now...THE REAL T by Eddy Hampton Armani. Popcorn at the ready.

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    I just finished-after the dance by jan gaye..and i'm onto-charlton heston.

  29. #29
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    Quote Originally Posted by arr&bee View Post
    I just finished-after the dance by jan gaye..and i'm onto-charlton heston.
    Jan's book was so hot that it was smokin'! What did you think of it?

    And is the Heston book an autobiography?

  30. #30
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    I just finish[the fifty year mission]the history of star trek...beam me up scotty!!

  31. #31
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    Quote Originally Posted by sansradio View Post
    jan's book was so hot that it was smokin'! What did you think of it?

    And is the heston book an autobiography?
    the jan gaye book was informative,the heston book was and updated look at his life and career, both are good.

  32. #32
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    'Destined for War: Can America Escape China's Thucydides Trap' by Graham Allison. Excellent & recommended.

  33. #33
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    Quote Originally Posted by theboyfromxtown View Post
    It only arrived this morning. I'm checking through it now....but I'm gonna have to save it for break time especially after you said that just skimming through it is rewarding enough!
    Okay, boyfromxtown, taking the Grace Jones plunge at last. Her ghostwriter's style strikes me as a little precious so far; hopefully, it won't impede my enjoyment.

  34. #34
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    My check book.

  35. #35
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    Quote Originally Posted by marv2 View Post
    my check book.
    hey marv,i have one of those too...but the pages are all blank!!

  36. #36
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    The Conclave. Going to Catholic schools got me all into Vatican intrigue [[God help me but a fairly good read)

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    Grace's book turned out to be fantastic! Up next...Beverly Johnson's THE FACE THAT CHANGED IT ALL [[noticing a theme here?). 😄

  38. #38
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    Moved on to Italian Folktales translated by Italo Calvino.

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    Under orders to read Dora Bruder before the next school term

  40. #40
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    I'm on to Motherless Brooklyn by Jonathan Lethem.

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    Quote Originally Posted by jobeterob View Post
    The Goldfinch drove me nuts for being pretty slow.

    I'm reading Motown: The Sound of Young America by Adam White is it?, with Barney Ales and a forward by Andrew Oldham.

    I'm surprised how few fans on here appeared to read it. It is like a Motown Bible - but it doesn't have any of the crap about group members whining about lead singer and it has none of the gossip. But it has some fairly harsh facts that not all the fans would like to hear. And a lot about Motown's white staff vs. black staff, all presented very matter of factly. And a lot about how crappy it was after Berry went to Los Angeles and how they went through Presidents, some of whom weren't well regarded - like Ewart Abner??
    Still working my way through this, which I actually got for Christmas! It's excellent. Currently reading another excellent book, Carly Simon's autobiog Boys In The Trees.

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    waiting for delivery of "The Last days of Detroit"

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    "Divine Right's Trip" by Gurney Norman

    When the original Whole Earth Catalog came out, Stewart Brand thought it should be, besides an "Access To Tools", it should also have some entertainment value, thus "Divine Right's Trip" was published inside the catalog, on the lower right portion of each page. It's a great little novel about a couple of "hippies", D.R. and Estelle, and their VW Bus, Urge. If your curious, this is the first page.....

    http://www.wholeearth.com/issue/1170...ght's.trip

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    THIS IS HOW YOU LOSE HER by Junot Diaz

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    Quote Originally Posted by sansradio View Post
    THIS IS HOW YOU LOSE HER by Junot Diaz
    Another great read. Junot's one of my grocery list writers. His Drown
    sold me. Right now I'm finishing up Ben Greenman's Dig If You Will
    The Picture, a look at the life and music of Prince. I do a lot of studying with non-fiction but I should be getting Mr Fox soon...

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    Quote Originally Posted by splanky View Post
    Another great read. Junot's one of my grocery list writers. His Drown
    sold me. Right now I'm finishing up Ben Greenman's Dig If You Will
    The Picture, a look at the life and music of Prince. I do a lot of studying with non-fiction but I should be getting Mr Fox soon...
    Oh, man! I'm dying to read that Greenman. And, yes, Junot is the man. He's due for another soon, I would think.

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    Just started the novel Your Face in Mine by Jess Row. It's got a fascinating premise: A white, Jewish man undergoes a surgical procedure to become Black. Mayhem ensues. Grabbing the popcorn!

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    Just started ASSUMPTION by Percival Everett.

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    Just in time for October...."This House is Haunted"....about the Enfield hauntings in England in the 1970's. Love the paranormal genre any time of year. Anyone have any recommendations? I think I've read most....but, am always looking.

    http://whitecrowbooks.com/books/page...d_poltergeist/

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