Savage Distortion

SOME BOOKS I READ THIS YEAR

My sister-in-law posted her top ten books of the year, and I thought to do the same, except I can't remember all the books I read this year, much less the top ten, so here's a list of some books I read, and how I felt about them.

Caesar (A Biography) by Christian Meier. I liked this book. It's not a light read, but I found it fascinating. I didn't know that the Germans kind of rule the scene when it comes to historical tomes on the Late Republic. Anyway, if you are serious about your history, and like me, are fascinated with the Romans, then by all means, check it out.

Sunset Express (An Elvis Cole Novel) by Robert Crais. I liked it well enough. I dig an easy read, and lately my easy reading of choice has been along the detective/crime novel lines, and this one is as good as any.

The Moon Men by Edgar Rice Burroughs. When I was a kid, I was a Burroughs freak. Mostly Tarzan novels, and mostly because Brian Hutchison read them. Brian was very cool, and I wanted to be just like him. I picked this one up for a dollar on one of those street vendor tables. Very silly stuff. Very racist, and misogynist.

Skinny Dip by Carl Hiassen. I like Carl. He was a buddy of Warren Zevon's, so I figured he'd be great, and he is. It's detective/crime stuff, but very funny. I recommend all of his stuff.

Mr. Nice (an Autobiography) by Howard Marks. Howard Marks was a big weed smuggler in the seventies and eighties. This is his story, and as fascinating as it was to read about all the danger and whatnot, it got old at about the nineteenth trip to Thailand.

Catch A Fire (The Life Of Bob Marley) by Timothy White. A long overdue read. I learnt quite a bit about Rasta, Jamaican politics, and the social strata of Jamaica. The book is written poorly. A great writer would have spent less time trying to convince his audience of the divinity of Marley, and more time telling the story, which is a great story, and deserving of so much more.

Blood And Gold by Ann Rice. Like many other foolish folks, I got hooked on the Vampire Novels of Ann Rice. This one is about Marius, the Maker of Armand, and all around cool Vampire on the town. There's a lot of historical background, as most of the book takes place in Venice during it's prime.

The Life Of Elizabeth I by Alison Weir. This was a great book. A page turner. I find Tudor England fascinating, and Elizabeth in particular. I give it my highest recommendation.

Scar Tissue by Anthony Keidis. At the risk of repeating myself; the story goes like this: I shot up, I got laid, I shot up, I got laid, I shot up, I shot up some more, I got laid...........

Whores by Brendan Mullen. Basically this is an oral history of Perry Farrel and Jane's Addiction. It's at times, funny, enlightening, historical, unnerving, and scary. I liked it.

And, number eleven, my favorite book this year: The Dirt by Motley Crue. This was the funniest book I read this year. This was the saddest book I read this year. This was definitely the book that kept me burning the midnight oil the most this year. I wish I knew who really wrote it, because that guy is good.