Adistantlife

I read two types of books: mysteries and non-fiction.  Typically, the mysteries are at night; the non-fiction for my evening commute on the GO train.

In mysteries, I am currently reading Rain Gods by James Lee Burke.    Just completed were: The Painter of Battles by Arturo Perez-Reverte (see recent posting); Pirate Latitudes by Micheal Crichton (a disappointing story); Gone Tomorrow by Lee Child (have read all in the Reacher series).  Next up will be chosen from a waiting pile:

• Mystic River by Dennis Lehane: enjoyed Shtter Island (a future review), and read him a number of years ago (forgotten the stories, but have the books to re-read)
• Neverwhere by Neil Gainman: a spontaneous purchase based on the description (I rarely rely on the book description!, so we’ll see)
• The Frightened Man by Kenneth Cameron: a historical mystery
• The Night’s Foul Work by Fred Vargas: always wanted to read this author, saw this hardcover on the discount shelf, thought I would give it a try
• The Information Officer by Mark Mills: stumbled onto this title on Amazon.ca
• Nearest Exit by Olen Steinhauer: a follow-up to The Tourist, which I enjoyed

In non-fiction, am currently in the midst of a few books: Making It All Work by David Allen; Angels and Ages by Adam Gopnik (a book on the lives of Darwin and Lincoln, who, coincidentally, were born on the same day); Guns, Germs, and Steel by Jared Diamond (a difficult book to read on the GO train!).

Recently finished Moneyball by Michael Lewis (see recent posting); Simplexity by Jeffrey Kluger (in the vein of Freakonomics); and Freakonomics by Steven Lebitt and Stephen Dubner (enjoyable, but not as strong as anything by Malcom Gladwell).

Next in line: Predictably Irrational by Dan Ariely (Duke University behavioral economist explaining how we make decisions); and The Lost City of Z by David Grann (a bought for my father, telling the true story of explorer Percy Fawcett’s 1925 search in the Amazon jungle for the legendary lost city).