Books You've Been Reading

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141

[quote]DBCooper wrote:

[quote]Drunkard wrote:

[quote]DBCooper wrote:
Just finished “Wilderness of Mirrors” by David C. Martin. It’s a biography of famous CIA officers, James Jesus Angleton and Bill Harvey. Very interesting read. I’d read a much more definitive book about Angleton a few years ago, but the stuff about Harvey was very interesting. He was the guy who headed up ZR/RIFLE, the CIA’s “executive action” program designed to carry out high-risk assassinations.

Just started reading “Counterplot” by Edward Jay Epstein. It’s a critical analysis of the many JFK assassination theories out there. I just started, so I’m not sure where it ends up standing on the issue (conspiracy or not?) but so far, Epstein is tearing apart Jim Garrison, both the man and his investigation into Clay Shaw, David Ferrie and so forth.[/quote]

What is the name of the book you read about Angleton? I’ve been wanting to learn about his history and methods for a while and will get a chance in the near future to sit down and actually read something.
[/quote]

Cold Warrior is the more definitive book about him. Wilderness of Mirrors is another book about him, the first, actually. But Cold Warrior is far more thorough.

I would also recommend Deception by Edward jay Epstein. It’s mostly about the battles between the CIA and the KGB, but the first several chapters deal with Angleton and his claim, “verified” by KGB defector, Anatoli Golitsin, that the CIA had a KGB mole within its highest ranks.

I’ve spoken about Angleton in the past on this site and I don’t want to get too wound up about him now, but I’ll just say that of all the people I’ve read about who were in or involved with the CIA prior to the Church Committee (which effectively ended the extra-curricular activities that the CIA is now infamous for), Angleton is BY FAR the most intriguing character of them all. If there is one guy from the CIA that I would recommend people read about, it is him.

Let’s put it this way. When you said that you want to learn about his methods, the first thing that popped into my head was that scene in Apocalypse Now when Willard has finally come face-to-face with Colonel Kurtz. Kurtz something about the Army accusing him of having unsound methods and Willard responds by saying that he doesn’t see any method at all.[/quote]

Great info. Much appreciated.

142

DB Cooper I saw Harlot’s Ghost at a bookstore yesterday and came very close to buying it from your recommendation but I looked at the end and it said “To Be Continued”…what’s up with that?

143

i’m a snail now you guys

144

[quote]Nards wrote:
DB Cooper I saw Harlot’s Ghost at a bookstore yesterday and came very close to buying it from your recommendation but I looked at the end and it said “To Be Continued”…what’s up with that?[/quote]

You looked at the end?!?!?!?!?!? What the fuck, man? You’re not supposed to do THAT!

Lol. Yeah, that’s the frustrating part of the book. I still HIGHLY recommend it, but I’ll give you a very brief synopsis of what Mailer was doing with this book.

It starts out with this guy, Herrick Hubbard, who is a CIA officer in, I believe, 1984. Something catastrophic has happened in his life and he is in danger due to some CIA shit that went sour. So, he leaves for Russia knowing that the people/person who may be out to get him will probably never look for him in Moscow. He isn’t defecting by any means, just escaping danger by going to exactly where he thinks a particular person of interest may be.

He has also written a lengthy novel about his time as a CIA officer between about 1954 and 1964. He has the whole thing on microfilm and begins to review it in his Moscow hotel room. This is where the “real” novel starts.

As he gets to the end of his novel, about a year after the Kennedy assassination, he begins thinking about the subjects covered in his novel and about one person in particular, his mentor, Harlot, who was found to have committed suicide at the outset of Harlot’s Ghost and Hubbard suspects he was actually murdered, hence the danger Hubbard is in.

Mailer intended for the book to be two parts, Harlot’s Ghost and Harlot’s Grave. But the sheer volume and scope of Harlot’s Ghost is absolutely staggering. The bibliography at the end of the book contains about 100 titles or so, 99% of which are scholarly works by intelligence historians or written by former CIA officers and whatnot. Unfortunately, due to the size and scope that the second book would have to have entailed in order to do the first one justice, Mailer never finished it before he died.

So there is no second half of the story, which is frustrating. He died before he could complete and I’m not sure, but I believe that he never even started it, so there really isn’t anything written by him that could point to where he was going with it. But it ends on quite the cliffhanger.

145

Thanks for that, I’ll pick it up next time. I just finished Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy so this is something I’m in the mood for.

By the way, I looked at the end only because I was looking at that bibliography and the last page was right there opposite.

146

[quote]Nards wrote:
Thanks for that, I’ll pick it up next time. I just finished Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy so this is something I’m in the mood for.

By the way, I looked at the end only because I was looking at that bibliography and the last page was right there opposite.[/quote]

Oh.

I haven’t read Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy. Is it better than the movie, because the movie fucking blew. Talk about an anti-climactic ending.

147

The movie is trying too hard to be mature and smart by being confusing (at least I thought it was) but it’s true to the book, storywise.
And I should add I found the book easier to follow than the movie.

148

[quote]pgtips wrote:
Resurecting an old thread here, but did’nt want to start a new one.

I’m reading the first book of the “The Flashman Papers” called “Flashman” by George MacDonald Fraser.

Hilarious and historicaly educational fiction set in 1839 - 1842.

It’s about Harry Flashman who is expelled from his posh boys school for being drunk, insolent and a bully amongst other things, he then starts a career in the army and soon starts climbing the ranks and making a name for himself as a brave soldier of the British Empire in spite of being a lier, cheat, womaniser and a terrible coward, he always acidently comes out of scrapes looking the hero, when, in fact he spent most of it playing dead or blubbing.

A great read with lots of uncomfortable truths about the old empire and the racism, snobbery, inequality and social ladders that came with it, but also a very funny read.

I’m going to look for a good dark science fiction novel next, does anybody have any to thrw my way?[/quote]

Oh God I remember reading the flashman papers, they’re some fo the funniest books I’ve ever read. You’ll love them.

Try “When gravity fails” if you’re looking for dark sci fi.

149

I have Fahrenheit 451 from my High school and I never read it. You guys recommend it?

150

Infinite Jest - David Foster Wallace - A long and somewhat strange book about a teenage tennis academy, drug rehab and Quebec seperatism and somehow it gets all related. A Great read

The Dog Stars - Peter Heller - Cool post apocalypse story about a man, his dog and his airplane.

Pillars Of The Earth + World Without End - Ken Follet - Kingsbridge priory, a great medieval story.

Conquerer Series - Conn Iggulden - Great historical fiction series about Genghis Khan. 1

The Stand (except the last 1/4) - Stephen King - A cool post apocalyptic story but the end irritated me, still a graet read though.

Afterlight - Alex Scarrow - Clearly I have a thing for the post apocalypse, this one is about a band of people living on an oil rig off the coast of England.

151

[quote]optheta wrote:
I have Fahrenheit 451 from my High school and I never read it. You guys recommend it?[/quote]
Yes

152

My wife gave me the entire Dark Tower Series by Stephen King. I just started the first book. Anyone read it and how do they feel about it? My dad just gave me his copy of The Racketeer by John Grisham and said it was excellent.

153

[quote]bpick86 wrote:
My wife gave me the entire Dark Tower Series by Stephen King. I just started the first book. Anyone read it and how do they feel about it? My dad just gave me his copy of The Racketeer by John Grisham and said it was excellent.[/quote]
Dark Tower series is probably Kings greatest IMO

I read the first one when it came out in the 80’s and only took 20 years to finish.

154

I’ve been reading Mastery by Robert Green when I get a chance.

Another I’m in the middle of is Shadow of the Hegemon by Orson Scott Card

155

[quote]Derek542 wrote:

[quote]bpick86 wrote:
My wife gave me the entire Dark Tower Series by Stephen King. I just started the first book. Anyone read it and how do they feel about it? My dad just gave me his copy of The Racketeer by John Grisham and said it was excellent.[/quote]
Dark Tower series is probably Kings greatest IMO

I read the first one when it came out in the 80’s and only took 20 years to finish.[/quote]

That will probably be me. I do not read fiction very much at all. I read a lot just things like strength journals and nutrition books. Maybe I will have to devote a little more time to this and knock it out.

156

[quote]bpick86 wrote:

[quote]Derek542 wrote:

[quote]bpick86 wrote:
My wife gave me the entire Dark Tower Series by Stephen King. I just started the first book. Anyone read it and how do they feel about it? My dad just gave me his copy of The Racketeer by John Grisham and said it was excellent.[/quote]
Dark Tower series is probably Kings greatest IMO

I read the first one when it came out in the 80’s and only took 20 years to finish.[/quote]

That will probably be me. I do not read fiction very much at all. I read a lot just things like strength journals and nutrition books. Maybe I will have to devote a little more time to this and knock it out.[/quote]
Lol, no it took that long cause it took King that long to finish it

157

Shows how much I know. I guess I had assumed they were all written and just released in sequence.

158

[quote]Derek542 wrote:

[quote]bpick86 wrote:

[quote]Derek542 wrote:

[quote]bpick86 wrote:
My wife gave me the entire Dark Tower Series by Stephen King. I just started the first book. Anyone read it and how do they feel about it? My dad just gave me his copy of The Racketeer by John Grisham and said it was excellent.[/quote]
Dark Tower series is probably Kings greatest IMO

I read the first one when it came out in the 80’s and only took 20 years to finish.[/quote]

That will probably be me. I do not read fiction very much at all. I read a lot just things like strength journals and nutrition books. Maybe I will have to devote a little more time to this and knock it out.[/quote]
Lol, no it took that long cause it took King that long to finish it[/quote]

I have wanted to read this series for a while. Aren’t the books ridiculously long?

159

[quote]Ripsaw3689 wrote:

[quote]Derek542 wrote:

[quote]bpick86 wrote:

[quote]Derek542 wrote:

[quote]bpick86 wrote:
My wife gave me the entire Dark Tower Series by Stephen King. I just started the first book. Anyone read it and how do they feel about it? My dad just gave me his copy of The Racketeer by John Grisham and said it was excellent.[/quote]
Dark Tower series is probably Kings greatest IMO

I read the first one when it came out in the 80’s and only took 20 years to finish.[/quote]

That will probably be me. I do not read fiction very much at all. I read a lot just things like strength journals and nutrition books. Maybe I will have to devote a little more time to this and knock it out.[/quote]
Lol, no it took that long cause it took King that long to finish it[/quote]

I have wanted to read this series for a while. Aren’t the books ridiculously long? [/quote]
Maybe. I read fast so I am not a good judge of that.

160

[quote]Derek542 wrote:

[quote]Ripsaw3689 wrote:

[quote]Derek542 wrote:

[quote]bpick86 wrote:

[quote]Derek542 wrote:

[quote]bpick86 wrote:
My wife gave me the entire Dark Tower Series by Stephen King. I just started the first book. Anyone read it and how do they feel about it? My dad just gave me his copy of The Racketeer by John Grisham and said it was excellent.[/quote]
Dark Tower series is probably Kings greatest IMO

I read the first one when it came out in the 80’s and only took 20 years to finish.[/quote]

That will probably be me. I do not read fiction very much at all. I read a lot just things like strength journals and nutrition books. Maybe I will have to devote a little more time to this and knock it out.[/quote]
Lol, no it took that long cause it took King that long to finish it[/quote]

I have wanted to read this series for a while. Aren’t the books ridiculously long? [/quote]
Maybe. I read fast so I am not a good judge of that.[/quote]

I meant as far as page count, like 1000+ pages per book.