Category: books read

  • Reading the Classics

    Reading the Classics

    pilgrim's progress
    pilgrim’s process

    Reading the Classics

    Books read 2019

    books read during 2018

    books read

    About a year ago I started reading classic books, starting with books on the Good Read’s list of a 1001 books to read before you die. I also have been reading books in the Harvard Classics books which were published decades ago – I bought a complete set from the State Department book sale for 10 dollars a few years ago and vowed that I would start reading them some day and just completed volume one – the autobiography of Ben Franklin and William Penn’s reflections.

    I completed 13% of the list. Lots more to read this year and in the coming years.My goal is to finish the list before I die so hopefully I will have enough time.

    here’s the list.  How many have you read? I’d love to know and will include your comments here. And you can join the Good Reads list as well.

    the list

    three books I have read recently that are not on the list but should be on the list include Dante’s Divine Comedy, Ben Franklin’s autobiography and William Penn’s reflections. The Ben Franklin autobiography and William Penn’s reflections are from part one of the Harvard Classic books list published decades ago. I was moved by all three pieces. The Dante Divine comedy is a moving epic masterpiece and is at times terrifying and inspirational. the autobiography of Ben Franklin was powerful as was William Penn’s reflections on life written just before he died. Enjoy the list and discussions on it.

  • Books read 2019

    Books read 2019

    end of the year reflections overview  book list 

    Every year at this time a year I like to reflect back on the year before what I had done what movies I had seen what books I had read where I have traveled and what I have accomplished this year for the first time I’m going to blog about this so here are my end-of-the-year book list movie list and travel list.

    books read during 2018

    books read

    Movies Watched During 2018

    Cosmos’s Music Play List 2018

    publication updates

    movies list

    new Yorker List Best Books of the Year

    good read choices

    books read
    books read

    First let’s look at the book list. This is the list of books I have read this year.

    reading goal for this year included 

    5 to 6  books per month  -2 from library one from Kindle  one from own library
    1 SF or thriller
    1 world lit including Korean, Latin American, Indian novels 
    1 poetry
    1 history or current event
    Read 19th classic novels 
    Read all my classic books as well
    One Korean history book
    One writing craft book
    One Spanish language book
    One Korean book   

    for next year continue as before but read more Korean and Spanish books

    The List

    1. AC Fuller   The Anonymous Source
    2. AC Fuller   the Inverted Pyramid
    3. AC Fuller   the Mocking Bird Drive 
    4. AC Fuller   the Shadow File 
    5. AC Fuller  The Last Journalist
    6. AC Fuller Cutline
    7. Earnest Howard The Atlantis Stone
    8. Down in the Dirt 2018 Anthology Natural Light includes my poem
    9. Down in the Dirt 2019 Literary Review my poem Strangeness in the Air appears November 
    10. Snarling Cup of Coffee My Chapbook as published in Poetry Superhighway give away
    11. David Balladaci Winner
    12. Making Out in Korean
    13. Vietnam Lonely Planet
    14. .Vietnam Cambodia Lonely Planet
    15. .Vietnam Easy Travel Guide
    16. .Continuing Korean
    17. .Advanced Korean
    18. Conspiracy Theory JD Oliva  Kindle
    19. .Museum Attack Jim Heskett Kindle
    20. .Jamie Thornton Germination did not finish Kindle
    21. Steve Konkoly Red Dragon Kindle
    22. Nathan Van Cooper In Times Like These Kindle
    23. Earnest Dempsey The Secret of the Stones Kindle
    24. Braddon Ellis Atlantis Quadrilogy Kindle
    25. .Bida Ernie Howard Kindle 
    26. .Howard Finn Adventures of Robin Hood Kindle
    27. .Nick Jones The Unexpected Gift of Joseph Bridgeman Kindle
    28. .Stephen Tharp the Western DMZ Paju
    29. .Icebergs Alistair Morgan
    30. An Ordinary Soldier Gramma Joyce  erotic shorts 
    31. The Camera and the Cobra erotic shorts
    32. .Substitutes Viet Dinh erotic shorts
    33. The Nursery Kirstein Sundberg erotic shorts
    34. Tell Him About Brother Joe Manuel Munoz erotic shorts
    35. Isabelle’s Daughter Karin Brown erotic shorts
    36. Purple Bamboo Park EV Slate erotic shorts
    37. This is Not Your City  Caitlin Horroks erotic shorts
    38. The Visitor Marisa Silver erotic shorts
    39. .The Bell Ring John Burnside erotic shorts
    40. .The House Behind A Weeping Cherry Ha Jin erotic shorts
    41. . And We Will Be Here  Paul Yoon erotic shorts
    42. Uncle Musto Takes A Mistress erotic shorts
    43. .Darkness  Andrew Sean Greer erotic shorts
    44. .Kind LE Miller erotic shorts
    45. .The Order of Things Judy Troy erotic shorts 
    46. Wildwood Junot Diaz  erotic shorts
    47. A Beneficiary Nadine Gordimer erotic shorts
    48.  Blasphemy Douglas Preston erotic shorts
    49.  .Michael Robinson The Alpha Plague erotic shorts
    50.  .The Enigma Stain Nick Thacke erotic shorts
    51. . Captain Bartholomew Quasar  Miles James Fowl erotic shorts
    52. .Kill Switch Steve N Lee – did not finish – a bit too violent for my taste
    53. .Second Chances Lincoln Cole Gripping emotional family drama – quite well done
    54. The Alpha Plague Michael Robinson – so so Zombie thriller
    55.  Strike Jim Heskett Did not finish
    56.  Tech Fall Austin Drago
    57. TS Elliot Complete poems and Plays
    58. Stuart Woods Skin Game – finished  YS Library 
    59. .Stuart Woods Desperate Measures 
    60. John Grisham The Reckoning YS 
    61. .David Poyer Deep Water
    62. .Bill Clinton/James Paterson The President Is Missing
    63. James Elroy This Story
    64. .Lindsay Buroker Star Nomad
    65. .Nick Thacker the Depths
    66. The Green Ghost Johnston Mc Cullety Shadow Justice
    67. Mr Death Takes the Wheel G Wyman Jones Shadow Justice
    68. The Emperor Runs the Gauntlet Charles Lee Jackson Shadow Justice
    69. the Shadow Smith Investigations Owen Fox Jerome Shadow Justice
    70. Fireball Charles Lee Jackson Shadow Justice
    71. the Crimson Mask Scorpion Trail Frank Johnson Shadow Justice
    72. The Reaper City of Thirst William Glass Shadow Justice
    73. The Mask of Cypher fireball adventure  Shadow Justice
    74. The emperor Marked for Death  Shadow Justice
    75. .Milo James Captain Bartholomew Quasar
    76. .Lincoln Cole Second Chances
    77. .Steve Lee Kill Switch
    78. .Michale Robinson the Alpha Plague
    79. .Micha Caridad Time Trap
    80. .Jim Hesket Strike
    81. .Ransom Riggs Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children
    82. .Ransom Riggs Hollow City
    83. .Ransom Riggs library of Souls
    84. .James Elroy American Tabloid
    85. .James Elroy The Cold Six  Thousand
    86. .James Elroy Blood Requiem
    87. .David Poyer Deep Water 
    88. .Lindsay Buroker Star Nomad
    89. .Nick Thacker the Depths
    90. Micha Caridad Time Trap
    91. .Minnie’s Diary my poem included the Market Rules Us All
    92. Poetry Explosion News letter – My poem Fears included
    93. .Poets Against the Wall – my poem Take Down this Wall included 
    94. .Best American Poetry 2017
    95. .Best American Poetry 2018
    96. .Best American Poetry 2019
    97. Easy Thai
    98. .Fundamentals of Thai Language
    99. .Thai Phrasebook
    100. Scales Fall All These Shining Worlds Best SF shorts
    101. the Ant Tower All These Shining Worlds Best SF shorts
    102. Heft All These Shining Worlds Best SF shorts
    103. the first acolyte of the Upshot All These Shining Worlds Best SF shorts
    104. Bronwells Dowry All These Shining Worlds Best SF shorts
    105. the Spider and the Darkness All These Shining Worlds Best SF shorts
    106. The Dowager’s Largress All These Shining Worlds Best SF shorts
    107. Therjiac All These Shining Worlds Best SF shorts
    108. the Red Flame of Death All These Shining Worlds Best SF shorts
    109. The Blue Breeze All These Shining Worlds Best SF shorts
    110. The Rakam All These Shining Worlds Best SF shorts
    111. Arthur Doyle Lost World
    112. Franklin Autobiography
    113. Craig McDonnough Destination Roswell
    114. Clare Littermore FLow
    115. Incheon Travel Guide
    116. Gangnam style  Yangchechong Stream
    117. His forbidden touch ten Shades of Sexy
    118.  Heaven’s fire ten Shades of Sexy
    119. just Perfect ten Shades of Sexy
    120. the Games ten Shades of Sexy
    121. Taken by the Cowboy ten Shades of Sexy
    122. Lips that Touch Mine ten Shades of Sexy
    123. Justin ten Shades of Sexy
    124. Hidden Crimes ten Shades of Sexy
    125. Trust Me ten Shades of Sexy
    126. Ten Shades of Sexy ten Shades of Sexy
    127. Mathew Mather Dark Net
    128. Austin Dragon Tek Fail
    129. Austin Dragon Liquid Cool
    130. Dean F WIlson Cool Hand Luke
    131. Austin Dragon Hollow Blood
    132. Duncan Simpson Dark Horizon
    133. AJ Ramsey Apocalypse Rise of the Machines
    134. Bobby Adair Freedom Fire
    135. Bobby Adair Slow Burn
    136. Alice May Bell Hot Wife
    137. Robert Peace Scout

    Other

    Other James Elroy read

    The Underworld USA Trilogy

    American Tabloid
    the Cold Six  Thousand
    Blood Requiem

    LA Quartet

    black Dahlia
    The Big Nowhere
    LA Confidential

    To read

    Whitman Leaves of Grass
    Dickenson Collected Poems
    the Wrinkle in Time five volume Series
           Robert Service Poems (from Alaskan gold rush period)
           Poetry for dummies
    The Poets Companion
    Art and Craft of Poetry
    Crafting Scenes
    Creating Plot
    Ben Nyberg One Way to Write Short Stories
    James n Frey How to Write Damn Good Novel
    Rittenberg Your First Novel
    Myeongo’s korean reader
    the lion the witch and the ward-row in Spanish and english
    Kim Soo Sijo In Korean and English
    Robert Collins North Korean Organization and Guidance Department
    Robert Collins Denied Human Rights at the Local Level
    Courtland Robinson Lost Generation
    Federalist Papers

    the End

  • books read during 2018

    Jake Cosmos Aller 2018 Reading List

    I read a lot this year, completed 85 books, and started book reviews on Good Reads. As usual a very eclectic reading list. My goal for 2019 is 100 books including a lot more poetry, and short stories as I continue my publication quest, and I’d like to read a couple of books in Spanish and at least one in Korean. Would love to see what other people have read this year. One of my highlights was reading the entire “Oz” series, and re-reading Wind in the Willows.” The Oz stories have a hidden agenda, as the Land of oz is depicted almost like a communist paradise. I wonder why these books were not condemned at the time as being dangerously subversive?

    Drop me a line and lets chat about favorite books read.

    1. William Oday Darwin Protocol
    2. Steve Richer – the Kennedy Secret
    3. Steve Doucette The Space Ship Next Door
    4. Richard Dawkins the God Delusion
    5. David Baldacci End Game
    6. Blake Crouch Dark Matter
    7. Joe Hill Snap Shot
    8. Joe Hill Loaded
    9. Joe Hill Aloft
    10. Joe Hill Rain
    11. John Le Carre A legacy of Spies
    12. James Patterson Humans Bow Down
    13. Preston and Childs The Cabinet of Curiosities
    14. JL Bourne Tomorrow War YS too right wing a point of view but still decent
    15. Milton Collected Poems
    16. Nathan Van Coop In Times Like These
    17. Austin Dragon Liquid Cool
    18. Kim Stanley Robinson New York 2140
    19. William Johnstone The Doomsday Bunker
    20. David Cay Johnson Its Even Worst Than You Think What the Trump Administration is Doing to America
    21. Chris Fleur Little Blue
    22. Steven Vincent the Foundation
    23. Dinsel Noell White Rabbit
    24. Brad Taylor Ring of Fire
    25. Stephen Coots Liberty Last Stand
    26. Harry Turtledove Armistices The Hot War
    27. Seoul Survivor 2017-2018
    28. Brendan Dubois Resurrection Day
    29. Rachael Lee Crimson Code
    30. Graham the Wind in the Willows
    31. Stuart Woods Unbound
    32. John Grisham Sycamore Row
    33. John Grisham The Whistler
    34. Mike Bose Hidden Agenda
    35. Austin Dragon After Eden
    36. Alex Lukeman the Solomon Scroll
    37. Al Li Not a Memory Exactly
    38. Mt McGuire Few Are Chosen
    39. Mt McGuire The Wrong Stuff
    40. Nick Thacker The Jefferson Legacy
    41. Nick Thacker Relics
    42. Austin Dragon Blood Hollow
    43. Austin Dragon Through these Streets Darkly prequel to Liquid Cool
    44. Ernie Howard Midnight Portals – Short Stories
    45. Lost Templar Tom Harper
    46. James Becker Lost Treasures of the Templars
    47. Lincoln Cole Everett Exorcism
    48. Johann David Wyss Swiss Family Robinson
    49. Tom Harper Lost Temple
    50. James Becker Lost Treasure of the Templars
    51. William Shakespeare King Henry V – also saw at OSF
    52. The Wonderful Wizard of Oz
    53. The Marvelous Land of Oz
    54. Ozma of Oz
    55. Dorothy and the Wizard of Oz
    56. The Road to Oz
    57. The Emerald City of Oz
    58. The Patchwork Girl of Oz
    59. Tik-Tok of Oz
    60. The Scarecrow of Oz
    61. Rintitink in Oz
    62. The Lost Princess of Oz
    63. The Tin Woodman of Oz
    64. The Magic of Oz
    65. Glinda of Oz
    66. Stuart Woods Unbound
    67. Stuart Woods The Money Shot
    68. David Baldacci The Fallen
    69. Randy Wayne white Caribbean rim
    70. Stephen King Full dark no stars
    71. Nick Jones the Unexpected Gift of Time
    72. Austin Dragon Tek Fail
    73. Ernest Dempsey Earnest Templar
    74. Lonely Planet guide Korea
    75. Lonely Planet Guide Seoul
    76. Howard Pyle Adventures of Robin Hood
    77. Brandon Ellis Atlantis
    78. Stephen Hawking Brief Answers to Big Questions
    79. Randy Wayne White Mangrove Lightning
    80. James Patterson Never Never
    81. Victor Cha the Impossible State
    82. Rick Wilson Everything Trump Touches Dies
    83. Steve Berry The Bishop’s Pawn
    84. AC Fuller The Anonymous Source
    85. Matthew Mather Darknet


    Reviews – Partial list

    Jake Aller’s Reviews > Tik-Tok of Oz

    Tik-Tok of Oz (Oz, #8)
    by
    L. Frank Baum
    Recommended for: fans of the oz books

    always loved the Oz Books. This is the sixth of the 24 I have read. I think I will go ahead and binge read the rest of the series. This particular book was a fun quick read and introduces the Tik Tok man the Shaggy Man, Cap Bill and Trot It also has a veiled satirical look at the society of the early 20th century. Oz is depicted almost as communist utopian society! Ruled by a benevolent dictator.
    Update: finished reading the rest of the series. The social criticism is there, buried here and there. I am surprised that the Oz stories were not banned by social conservatives!!!!

    The Solomon Scroll (The Project, #10)
    by
    Alex Lukeman (Goodreads Author)

    not too bad a thriller. In the genre of Don Brown’s thriller with a nice twist, involving an ancient religion, and some supernatural elements as well. An interesting nexus between Catholic conspiracies and Islamic terrorist organizations. The love scenes could have been drawn out a bit more. but overall I’d give it a solid B and would read more from this author in the future.

    Jake Aller’s Reviews > The Wind in the Willows

    The Wind in the Willows
    by
    Kenneth Grahame
    I first read this when I was 6 years old. Re-read it at age 62. Still fresh and lively and full of great language and vivid images. Strong characters especially Toad, Rat, Badger and the Mole. My favorite is probably the Rat. I can identify with him. There were several tangents that would have made a great sequel particularly the sea rat’s offer to Rat to join him on a voyage to the Southern seas.

    I also like the basic story line that humans and animals all lived together in relative harmony and understanding. That was a nice story line in and of itself. All in all, I can see why this story has remained a classic story.

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