Thomas C. Kelley

Unsettling but necessary info

Revisado: 01-28-25

My suspicion is that this will not be an easy read for most Americans who grew up in a world in which we were taught all about the exceptional things the United States has done throughout history. The author tears this myth down and presents a reflection of America that is unsettling and painful. I would argue that this is the necessary that my generation (baby boomer) did not receive. I had no illusions going into this book as I have been well American imperialism since my Peace Corps days. It explains how we got to where we are. It also outlines how very little of what we are seeing going on today is really new to the way in which the United States has operated internally and externally as an imperialist power. No one president comes out of this guilt free. Likewise, society does not come out guilt free either. The author may present things that offend readers and upset them, but he is doing so to challenge the common beliefs that have been instilled in us for decades. I highly recommend this book.

Has calificado esta reseña.

Reportaste esta reseña

Eeriness in the English countryside

Revisado: 08-31-24

Enjoyed the underlying mood of menace coupled with the deep dark secrets of the Church. Well worth reading. Great intro to the Merrily Watkins series

Has calificado esta reseña.

Reportaste esta reseña

Great history lesson

Revisado: 11-14-23

This was a great intro to Irish history. It has given me new perspective on my ancestry

Has calificado esta reseña.

Reportaste esta reseña

Not as good as The House Of God

Revisado: 02-03-23

For those eager to find a continuation of Shem’s brilliant House of God, you will and won’t encounter it in Mount Misery. Set about twenty years after the original, we find Roy Basch struggling his way through a psychiatric residency. As with The House of God, Shem fills this sequel with countless absurdities that unfortunately are indeed true (I say this as an intensivist who is well-versed in Medicine and the rigors of Psychiatry). I enjoyed this book though it was not as fresh as the original. When it gets serious, it gets brutally serious. I think that part of my frustration with this novel is that I don’t really like the character of Roy Basch. He is basically a shit of a person who bumbles his way through rotations and women not recognizing the good that he has in his life partner Berry until after he has engaged in several other frivolous relationships. Despite my frustrations with Mount Misery, I still recommend it to those who are well-versed in Medicine and Psychiatry and where the latter fits in with the former. I think that readers who are not physicians will have a very hard time with the book’s sarcasm. They will also not likely be too sympathetic to Roy.

Has calificado esta reseña.

Reportaste esta reseña

esto le resultó útil a 2 personas

A worthwhile read

Revisado: 06-17-22

I have enjoyed both the Mickey Haller (Lincoln Lawyer series) and the Bosch series. Admittedly, I watched both in their movie/TV show formats prior to starting the books. This may have biased my perspective on the performance. I have a vision of Harry Bosch that is without a doubt influenced by the excellent performance on screen by Titus Welliver. Thus, when listening to his performance of The Black Echo, it felt perfect. He did not narrate The Black Ice. That performance was excellent, nonetheless though to me, it is not as strong as when Titus Welliver narrates. The story is excellent and crisp. I look forward to reading the entire series.

Has calificado esta reseña.

Reportaste esta reseña

Great source material for any fan of The Room and all that surrounds it

Revisado: 04-13-22

Having just seen a premier of the spectacularly bad original film hosted by Greg Sestero himself, I had to read this. The Room itself is everything it is built up to be (at least by everyone other than Tommy himself). The Disaster Artist film proved to be a fairly true but slightly lighter rendition of its book. The book really gives one insight into the madness that surrounded this labor of love. In its own way, having been prt of the making of this film must have been like being a part of one of the great moments in Hollywood history though for all the wrong reasons. I am sure I will see The Room again with a member of its cast or production team taking a Q and A and I am sure I will throw spoons at the screen, yell out the lines and insults as it plays and be a part of all the antics that go on at such screenings. This book just added more flavor to that experience. A must read for any dan of movies good and bad (but especially for fans of bad ones like Manos, Night of the Lepus, Flash Gordon, Cats (barf up rhat furball) and Jupiter Ascending).

Has calificado esta reseña.

Reportaste esta reseña

Formulaic but fun

Revisado: 01-16-22

A good medical thriller in the tradition of coma. Somewhat dated and formulaic but fun

Has calificado esta reseña.

Reportaste esta reseña

Spectacular

Revisado: 10-12-21

I cannot say enough good things about Sandman Act One. I listened to it while following along page by page through the first volume of the Omnibus collection. It represents an entirely new way of reading a graphic novel. Rich lavish and always stimulating and thought-provoking… This is a great addition to the audible series and to literature in general. I look forward to Act Two

Has calificado esta reseña.

Reportaste esta reseña

Why has this series not been made into a movie series or TV show

Revisado: 09-04-21

Blast of a read from start to finish. I hear there are many Repairman Jack novels out there. Great character. This series is just begging to be put on film. I look forward to reading them all!

Has calificado esta reseña.

Reportaste esta reseña

Lots of hype but in the end, just a cult

Revisado: 08-25-21

I remember reading this book years back when I was in college. I suspect that time and life has changed me considerably. Marriage, kids, med school, a stint in the Peace Corps and two deployments to a war zone tend to do that to a soul. Back in college, I saw the book as comical and representative of an idyllic lifestyle. This time through, I think I see that which is presented for what it is: a cult of wanderer looking for a higher meaning in their drug trips. Sure, they claimed to be expanding their minds and passing through new “doors of perception” but in the end, they were all just looking for justification to get high. The writing is excellent as is most everything Wolfe wrote. The glorification of LSD is a bit excessive but it fits with the subject matter. Although I love One Flew over the Cuckoo’s Nest, in the end, I did not come away with a positive vision of Kesey based on Wolfe’s presentation of him. Rather, I ended up seeing him as more of a sad figure who had become a dying legend that could no longer live up to the hype surrounding him. Perhaps that was central to why he kept coming back to the idea of moving past the LSD itself. Perhaps he had gotten bored with it all.

Has calificado esta reseña.

Reportaste esta reseña