The Lion and The Sun

The Lion and the Sun: A Novel  --by Richard Badalamente

Fiction

406 pages

Footnotes/Endnotes: No

Suitable for eReaders: Yes

4 Stars

This was a step out of my usual fiction read, and I'm very happy I took the step. Spy stories don't usually keep me reading for a variety of reasons (suffice it to say, I'd never have been a successful spy), but this book grabbed me and I began to resent when forced to put it down to take care of necessary business!

The hero, Daniel Conte, is wonder of wonders, human! He hurts, he feels, he has emotion (but not overly so). He is tracking down some stolen plutonium that the Russians don't want to admit is gone. He comes face to face with assassins, his Russian counterpart who becomes, well, a friend. There are flashbacks to the time when the Shah was overthrown and the American Embassy stormed, and those flashbacks are very, very important. And interesting, especially to those of us who remember that time.

Most of the story takes place in Europe and the Middle East, and the author's work as a senior analyst in national security with a focus on nuclear nonproliferation, counterintelligence, and counter terrorism certainly adds that oft-missing realism to this story. Plus it's obvious the author has visited the places (or at least some) he describes..

A fun read, a page burner, and a job well done, Mr. Badalamente! I can hardly wait to read the next book.

(Have you ever noticed they are read faster than the authors can write them?)

Oh Myyy! It's George Takei!

Oh Myyy! (There Goes the Internet) –by George Takei

Autobiography

244 pages  3605 KB

Footnotes/Endnotes: no

Suitable for eReaders: yes

5 Stars

  

I bought this book for my Kindle Fire, and 'saved' it for a special occasion. That came on the day I spent 10 hours in the hospital while a friend had open heart surgery. I not only enjoyed the book, but, believe me, I needed it! (The surgery was a success, thanks for asking.)

If you're of an age, and believe me, I am, and faced with the intricacies of Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and the rest of today's technologies, this is the book to read. No, it isn't a 'how to' book, it's a great romp through George Takei's learning and mastering same. He makes it sound so simple, so easy, and at the same time, doesn't make me feel like I'm such a dunce.

It's like having Mr. Sulu explain all the electronics on the bridge of the Enterprise in language I can actually understand. (But, in that dreamy bass voice of his, would I even hear the words, or just the music?)

For anyone with a great sense of humor, who loves all the geeky stuff, who loves cats, the internet (ok, and George Takei;-) this is the book for you! A fun read, just what the Doctor ordered! Take with lots of laughs, a few chuckles, and a humongous smile!

My only complaint was the pictures were small, and I couldn't get them to expand. That's not Mr. Takei's fault, that's Mr. Kindle's fault.