How This Nonsense Began I've lived in Connecticut since 1991 when I entered UConn. During the time since, I've lived in Storrs, Mansfield, Glastonbury, New Britain, Manchester, Cheshire, East Hampton, and now West Hartford. I've stayed with friends from Stamford to Brookfield to Ledyard. I've hiked in Canterbury, … [Read more...]
Northeast 111 (115) List
NE111 NH48, NE67, ADK46, and 2 CAT35s The Northeast 111ers is an informal group of climbers who have climbed to the summit of the 115 highest peaks of the Northeastern USA (those above 4000 feet). The mismatch between the name of the club and the number of peaks is due to more accurate surveys and other … [Read more...]
Modern Library’s Top 100 Novels
Just Read 2002 - 2039 or so Outside of all the regular CTMQ stuff, I have other goals. One of those goals is to read The Modern Library Top 100 English novels of the 20th century. If all goes well, I hope to finish the entire list around retirement age. This little scheme began in 2002 as an agreement with Hoang … [Read more...]
Top 100 Modern Library Books Tally
At the turn of the century, the Modern Library, whomever they may be, came out with a list of their Top 100 English Literature novels of the 20th Century. Criticism abounded and many more lists and counter-lists were developed. But I had met a girl in 2000 who agreed to tackle the whole list with me, plodding slowly … [Read more...]
ML64. The Catcher in the Rye
If a Body Meet a Body, Give Them This Book Modern Library # 64 1945, J.D. Salinger [I write CT Beer Reviews too. They aren't typical beer reviews at all - like this one in particular which, if you're reading this page, you may enjoy a little bit.] I begin this review with a plea: If you haven’t read this book … [Read more...]
ML52. Portnoy’s Complaint
Oy Vey! Modern Library # 52 1967, Philip Roth This may perhaps be the most difficult Top 100 Book Review I'll ever do. Not because I loved it so much I can't find the words and not because I hated it either. No... it's because "Portnoy's Compaint" is so downright dirty and sex-filled that I wouldn't know how to … [Read more...]
ML45. The Sun Also Rises
Great Book. No Bull. Modern Library # 45 1926, Ernest Hemingway I love Ernest Hemingway. There, I said it. Anti-Semite, racist, mysoginist, drunkard, jerk... On and on the epithets go - but I'm judging the man's work, not his personality. I'm reading my Hemingway "up;" from the shorter stuff like "Snows of … [Read more...]
Modern Library 41. Lord of the Flies
Kids are Stupid Modern Library # 41 1954, William Golding Ah, yes, the book you all had to read in middle school. Ralph, Jack, Piggy, Roger, Simon and the rest, stranded on a deserted island and left to fend for themselves. A study of human nature, self-reliance and self-governance, this is one of those … [Read more...]
ML36. All the King’s Men
The Sin of Politics Modern Library #36 1946, Robert Penn Warren I picked up this book in a flight of fancy that said, "Read this book quickly in early September and then I will go out and enjoy the surely Oscar-worthy movie version starring Jude Law, Sean Penn, Anthony Hopkins, and Kate Winslet that premiers … [Read more...]
ML33. Sister Carrie
How Sista Got Her Groove Back Modern Library # 33 1900, Theodore Dreiser First, a mildly entertaining personal story about this book. Back in 2005, before our kids and other such grown-up nonsense, my wife Hoang and I used to go on fun little vacations. One such trip took us to South Beach. And yes, it surely … [Read more...]