Shackleton, Huntford - B+, Inc.

                      Ernest Shackleton was born on Feb. 15, 1874 to an Anglo-Irish family in County Kildare. He moved to a London suburb when he was a boy. He went to sea at 16. He sailed in a square-rigger and signed up for the officers' apprenticeship program. In 1894, he shipped out for five years in the Far East as a 4th mate. When back in London in 1899, he signed up for the National Antarctic Expedition. He was ambitious and bored in the mercantile service. The 'Discovery' sailed under the command of Robert Scott in August, 1901. At 77. 50 S, the ship set in for the Antarctic winter. Scott chose Shackleton and the ship's physician, Edward Wilson, to accompany him south in the spring. They were woefully unprepared, unfamiliar with snow, unable to ski, and incapable of managing dogs. They headed south on Nov. 2. Their diet was inappropriate and their clothing ill designed. Suffering from scurvy and with Scott and Shackleton bickering, they turned back on Dec. 30. They had achieved 82. 15 S. It took a month to return to the ship. All three were ill, but Shackleton was close to death. Scott invalided him home on a visiting whaler while the 'Discovery' stayed another year. Shackleton's goal was to get rich quickly and he participated in a number of failed endeavors. Thankfully, in 1907, he was able to raise the funds and organize another venture to the Antarctic. He believed that fame would bring fortune. He consulted with noted Norwegian explorer, Fritzhof Nansen, and ignored all of his advice. He planned on man-hauling, eschewed skis and dogs and decided to bring horses and a car. The 'Nimrod' sailed in August 1907 one step ahead of growing list of creditors. Five wearying months later, the ship dropped off the shore party at Discovery Point and returned to New Zealand. Winter passed and the two month preparation for the march to the pole began in August. On Oct. 29, he and three hand picked colleagues headed south. In less than a month, they surpassed Scott's furthest south. In early December, the last horse perished. They were now on the polar plateau, having climbed up the 10,000 foot mountain, but were fading. Their clothes and equipment were failing to keep them warm. They had reduced their daily caloric intake, and were suffering from altitude sickness.  They were three-quarters of the way to the pole on New Years' Day. They knew they could not make it and return in time. So they decided to push on in an attempt to get within 100 miles of their objective. On Jan. 9, 1909, at 88. 23 S and 97 miles from the pole, they turned back and faced a 730 mile race to safety. Weakened and traveling from depot to depot, they once went 40 hours without food. They reached safety on Feb. 28. Shackleton returned home a national hero, was knighted by the king, and the government granted him twenty-thousand pounds to defray the expedition's  debts.

                  Most of the rest of this book deals with the incredible tale of the 'Endurance' and like many others, I read a magnificent book on that about a decade ago. Furthermore, I am reading a paperback with very small print that blurs after about an hour. Consequently, this volume will not be completed by me. 

                 Shackleton's leadership after the 'Endurance' sank is the reason for his fame and renown a century later. A television show of it with Kenneth Branagh was released in 2002. That same year, Shackleton was voted the 11th greatest Briton in a BBC poll. He led the crew in an epic struggle to survive. They camped out on an ice floe for two months. They launched their lifeboats and sailed 346 miles to Elephant Island. They then sailed 720 miles to South Georgia Island. Shackleton marched across the island to find the help necessary to rescue his crew. Every man survived. They returned home to the UK in the spring of 1917. He died a few years later of a heart attack on another trip to South Georgia. Ironically, part of the reason for the resurgence of Shackleton in the public eye isa  book written by this author in the 1970's. In 'The Last Place On Earth', Huntford treated Scott's failed expedition that led to his death with such disdain in contrast to Amundsen's successful outing, that Scott's popularity in the UK plummeted and Shackleton's rose in its place.

The Red Balcony, Wilson -B

                      This novel is set in the British Mandate of Palestine in 1933-34. The assassination of a Zionist working with Nazi Germany to help Jews escape is the central plot point. The British try hard to keep the lid on the underlying Arab-Jewish tensions, the Arabs are vehemently opposed to Zionist efforts, and many moderate Jews think things should go a bit slower. We see this swirling story through the eyes of a young English/Jewish lawyer sent to Tel Aviv to work for the leading defense counsel. This is based on the true story of the murder of Chaim Arolosoroff, whose assailants were never found.

Mecca, Straight - B+

                     This absolutely great novel delves deep into the culture of Southern California, Hispanic Southern California. The lead characters, Johnny, Matelasse, Merry, Ximema, are all the descendants of those who came when California was part of Spain's empire. They are a CHP patrolman, a florist, a nurse, a housekeeper. Life is hard for this group, almost all born and raised on the economic fringes of the white world, often in houses their grandparents or great grandparents built on the hardscrabble land of their forefathers. They are subjected to daily racial abuse, constantly being called wetbacks, asked if they're illegals, and most appallingly, being told to go back to where they came from. ICE is everywhere and even those whose families have been here hundreds of years live in fear and are always wary. Truly excellent.

Empress of The Nile: The Daredevil Archaeologist Who Saved Egypt's Ancient Temples From Destruction, Olson - B

                     Christiane Desroches was a French Egyptologist born in 1913.  After graduating from the Lycée Moliere in 1930, she studied at the Louvre.  She graduated and went to work on the curatorial staff. In 1937, she went to Egypt for the first time. She worked with an important French team near the Valley of the Kings. "Desroches time at Deir-el-Medina was brief but her experience there...would have a powerful effect on her life and career." She was awarded a three year fellowship at the French Institute of Oriental Archaeology in Cairo. As the first woman there, her presence caused her male colleagues to protest. Both she and the director concluded she should go 500 miles south to Edfu, the most arduous dig in their program. She had the good fortune to find an unexcavated tomb. Upon her return to Paris, she helped the Louvre evacuate most of its collection to hideaways in the countryside. Throughout the war, she continued to work at the Louvre and also participated in resistance activities. Afterwards, she became  an instructor at the Ecole du Louvre.  In 1952, Nasser took over Egypt and assumed control of the country's antiquities. The man in charge of the Antiquities Service, Mustafa Amer,  asked UNESCO to help run the archaeological affairs of the country. When UNESCO asked who they wanted to manage the UN initiative, the answer was Christiane Desroches. 

                  Amer and Desroches established the Centre d'etudes et documentation d'archeologie Egyptienne (CEDAE). Both realized that the planned construction of the Aswan High Dam, which would flood an area 300 miles to the south, would forever inundate the ancient monuments of Nubia. Both Sudan and Egypt asked the UN for help. Fifty countries contributed to the undertaking. The US viewed the rescue effort as being pro-Nasser and refused to participate, until Jacqueline Kennedy adopted the cause, which the president supported because he wanted to broaden America's concept of foreign aid*. "Ultimately the rescue project, including the transportation and reconstruction of the temples on their new sites, took over twenty years." Desroches brought the Tutankhamun exhibit to the Louvre, where it was seen by over one million people in 1967. A decade later, she arranged for a major Ramses II exhibit in Paris. She retired from the Louvre in 1983 when she turned 70. She embarked on her last great venture in Egypt at the Valley of the Queens. She worked until 1992, when she left the desert for the last time. In retirement, in her 80's, she wrote 11 books, a number of which were bestsellers. When she was 93, a noted producer created an 8 hour documentary about France's great Egyptologist. France granted her the Grand Cross of the Legion of Honor. She died in 2011. This is a very interesting biography with an excellent dose of Egyptian history.

                     

*The US received the Temple of Dendur in exchange for its generosity. It is a permanent exhibit at the Met in NY.                

 

Gangland, Hogan - B+

                      This is a totally fascinating novel set in 1970's Chicago. Nicky 'Pins' Passero, owner of a bowling alley, does a job for Tony Accardo, and shoots Sam Giancana five times while Sam's dinner is sizzling on the stove. Thus begins a great story that is partially fiction and partially fact. Accardo and Giancana were big time Chicago bosses. Nicky Pins is a fictional character, a quiet middleman who has earned Accardo's confidence. Levinson's Jewelry is robbed by a sophisticated crew who didn't ask Tony's approval, nor pay him a piece of the action. When Tony learns of the robbery, which included a gift for his wife, he orders that the stolen goods be returned. Johnny Salita, architect of the theft, is so distraught that he starts a war against Tony, that leads to endless unanticipated results. Great insight into the era, the Outfit, and the truly horrid consequences of life on the fringes of that world.

Standing In The Shadows, Robinson - B+

                         D. C. I. Banks is still running the serious crimes unit in Eastvale and is faced with a skeleton found at a site where a road and shopping centre are going in. Forensics ascertains that it's been underground about five years, but with nothing but bones left, there is not much else anyone can tell. Research ascertains that the land was once owned by a former cop, and that the decedent just might be a crime boss from a nearby town. It's actually worse than that because the the crime boss once was on the police force and worked for the landowner. Together they did a few nasty things that a 'Guardian' reporter remembers well. The 28th in the series and another great one. Sadly, Peter Robinson died in October. 

Devil's Blaze, Harris - C

                      In May of 1943, Whitehall sends a message to 222 Baker Street requesting the presence of Holmes and Watson at a meeting of an intelligence committee. One must appreciate a Holmes specifically based on Basil Rathbone. Additionally, the author is a master of the historical novel, but a story based upon the spontaneous combustion of four wartime ministers lacks believability, even if Germany had done some research into chlorine trifluoride. The mastermind, Professor Moriarity, works for the UK government and almost defeats Holmes, but it is, of course, not going to happen. Once again, they tragically find themselves  at Reichenbach Falls, but this time Watson is there to save Sherlock.

 

The Red Queen, Gomez-Jurado - B+

                     This police thriller is the first of a series and is set in Madrid. The principal character is Antonia Scott, an English-Spanish genius criminologist on par with Sherlock and Mycroft Holmes. She works for a mysterious EU-wide organization that is called in when national police are confronted with incomprehensible challenges. The first victim is the school-age child of a wealthy woman. The boy's blood was drained from his body. The second case is the kidnapping of the daughter of the richest man in the country. Filled with fascinating intrigue and deductions.

A Civil War: Army vs. Navy, Feinstein - B+

                    "At Army and Navy, the players understand the difference between football and war...there is a bond between the players and their schools like no bond between any other rivals in sports." "At every other school in America, the hardest part of any football player's day is football practice. At the military academies, the easiest part of a football player's day is football practice." This is the story of the 1995 Army-Navy game.

                     It was once the most important football game, college or pro, played in America. In the 1940's, the game decided a national championship. As recently as 1963, Navy was ranked number two in the nation. Vietnam ended that, as the academies fell out of favor. The performance of the football teams declined dramatically. There were occasional winning years in the 1970's and 80's, but they were few and far between. The quality of the opponents diminished, and both teams deteriorated. Before the 1994 Army-Navy game, it was clear that the Army coach had lost the club, but the AD kept Bob Sutton on for another year. Matters were worse in Annapolis where scandals rocked the academy and there was no connection between the student body and the players. Navy announced Charlie Weatherbie as its new coach at year's end. Throughout the spring and summer, the dozens of young men on each team continued their brutal schedules of studies, practice and military training. Each team was made up of young men who had one goal in life - to play big time college football. All loved the game, but they were not big enough, fast enough or strong enough to play for the Division I powerhouses. So, they went to the academies and endured the discipline and structure that barely gave them a moments respite. 

                      Army opened up at home with an easy win against Lehigh, but lost to Duke a week later by 2 points. If instant replay had existed then, they would have won the game, as the refs botched a late call in Duke's favor. Navy crushed SMU in their opener and lost to Rutgers a week later. Army lost a close one at ranked Washington in week 3. Navy lost at home to Wake Forest 30-7 even though they were favored by 10. It was a complete and total humiliation. They recovered and defeated Duke the following week by 21. Army tied Rice in week 4 on a last second  field goal. After a bye week, Army played magnificently at the Meadowlands losing to Notre Dame by a point. Navy suffered through consecutive losses to Virginia Tech and the Air Force Academy before beating Villanova. Army crushed BC in a monsoon a week after the ND loss and then handily outscored Colgate. They lost the following week to E. Carolina. Navy played Notre Dame in South Bend in snowy weather and was leading at half time, but couldn't hold on. Each team had two games remaining before Thanksgiving. Navy beat Delaware and Tulane to move their record to 5-5. Army lost to Air Force and defeated Bucknell to go to 4-5-1. Both teams had outperformed their previous year's records. The big game was December 2nd in Philadelphia.

                 It was the 96th meeting. Army had won 45, Navy 43. There had been seven ties. Amazingly, after almost a century, the point differential was 54. The Middies had lost the previous three. This was their seniors' last chance. Navy scored after a turnover within the first two minutes. Army tied at 3:20 left in the first. The only score in the 3rd was a Navy field goal. Navy opened the fourth with another FG. An Army fumble gave Navy the ball on Army's 14 yard line. Navy was 4th and goal on the 1, and a field goal would have required two Army scores. Navy attempted a short pass that failed. Army had the ball on their own 1. There were 8:23 left. They marched down the field, and were 4th and 24 at the Navy 29 with 1:29 left. A completed pass put Army on the 1. They scored, kicked the extra point and were ahead 14-13 with 63 seconds left. Navy countered and the game came down to a Hail Mary with 2 seconds left. Army intercepted and won. Half an hour later, Jim Cantaloupe, Army's defensive captain walked into the Navy locker room still in uniform. He found his Navy counterpart, Andy Thompson, and hugged him while Thompson sobbed. Navy's seniors had lost four games by a total of six points.

                A magnificent book about magnificent young men. Once again, thanks to my brother for the recommendation.

The Age of Vice, Kapoor - B

                      This somewhat lengthy, successful, and already signed up by FX for a series novel is set in India in the early 21st century. This India is a hellhole of violence, hatred, caste prejudice, injustice, and mind-numbing poverty. As a child Ajay, a Dalit, is sold into captivity by his mother, who has been shunned after her husband is murdered. He is taken far from Upper Pradesh by a farmer into the mountains where he grows from a pre-teen to a young man. The only way to survive is to perform your expected services with efficiency and discretion. Over the course of his decade in the mountains, he does his usual proficient job for a group that visits every summer from the lowlands. The summer his owner dies, a lowlander tells him that he has a job waiting in New Delhi if he wishes. Ajay goes to work for Sunny Wadia, son of a noted gangster, and succeeds beyond his wildest expectations. Within a few years, he is Sunny's guard, driver, fixer, and friend. 

                       Sunny's girlfriend, Neda, is a journalist slowly drawn into his world of corruption and deceit. She and her boss view and chart the the web of corruption that the Wadia's propagate, but the 'system stops' the publication of anything. As Neda loses faith in decency and humanity, she sees one of Sunny's cronies commit a heinous vehicular murder that Ajay takes the fall for. The price of her silence is a scholarship in London and a sizable bank account. Sunny continues his love affair with whiskey and cocaine, spiraling further downward with a bit of what feels like a dead cat bounce toward decency, but one is far from confident.

                        The NYT reviewer acknowledges the commercial potential and skill of the author, but says he checked out at page 75. I wouldn't go that far, but will suggest that after the depiction of the life and story of Ajay, the novel falls precipitously. I have no real interest in the country, have never been and do not intend to ever go. If you loved India and were dying to go, the depiction of the  corruption and poverty would scare you off.

 

The Rivalry: Mystery at the Army-Navy Game, Feinstein

                      Somehow, I misread a recommendation and downloaded a YA novel. I was on a plane when I realized it and had nothing else on my Kindle. Plus, John Feinstein is one of the best. I'll skip the plot which involves teen reporters meeting Barack Obama, Bob Woodward, and determining that the refs were betting on the game, before they were replaced in the 3rd quarter. The end piece has some great miscellaneous information though: TR was the first president to attend, the game was played in Chicago in 1926 to commemorate the opening of Soldier Field, only player in both college and pro HOF is, of course, Roger Staubach,  Staubach was also first of only four Heisman winners to be Super Bowl MVP, and the game was played in the Rose Bowl in 1983. Roger Staubach has said that the proudest moment of his life was to be introduced at the Super Bowl as "quarterback, from the United States Naval Academy."

So You Shall Reap, Leon - B

                       Donna Leon is 80, and this is the 32nd in the series.  The books have never been long, but seem to be getting shorter. An illegal worker from Sri Lanka is murdered. He has few friends and apparently no enemies. Guido, a student of the ancient historians and geographers, is intrigued by the man's library, which shows an uncommon curiosity. A few notebooks reflect back on the 1980 heyday of radicalism in Italy and mention three Venetians, one of whom is the man's landlord. This obviously piques Guido's curiosity and leads him on an unlikely course to find the killer. As always, time with Paola, Chiara and Raffi, as well as the cast of the Questura is as comfortable as any reading experience can be.