SIDDHARTHA by Herman Hesse

Finished Tu 8/11/26

The second book in my Herman Hesse Trilogy from Kindle. Very interesting; Do not strive to emulate a mentor's struggle, but learn to 'evolve' in your own way.   

From Kirkus:

"A serene ""classic novel"" about a spiritual journey through Indian mysticism -- a smooth, bland entity for a special audience by the author of Steppanwalf and winner of the 1946 Nobel Prize. This is the story of the young Brahmin, Siddhartha, and his progress from arrogant asceticism, through abandonment to the senses, rebirth of spiritual vigor, deep human grief, to an appreciation of the unity and beauty of all things, a unity in which words and thoughts appear as shadows. The style reflects this discovery of the timeless rooted in the nature of time- the author's stringent, economical phrasing with its careful rhythms lends the book an air of studied antiquity, refreshing, yet, oddly, new. Limited market."

DEMIAN by Herman Hesse

Finished Th 8/6/26

I read this on Kindle and I got 'DEMIAN', 'SIDDARTHA', & 'STEPPENWOLF' for fifty cents at Kindle. I was looking for 'THE GLASS BEAD GAME', but I couldn't pass up this deal.

Emile Sinclair is bullied at school and he is 'saved' by Max Demian. Max & his mom become the most important figures in his life; Weird sexual attraction to 'his best friend's mother'. Set shortly before and during the first world war. 

  From Kirkus:

"What Catcher in the Rye has come to mean for America's younger generation, Demian proved to be for Germany's early post-WWI youth. Yet though the effect was similar, Hermann Hesse's beautiful, brooding tale, both in style and philosophic intent, bears little relation to Salinger's work. Rather it is in that odd, poetic, distinctly European tradition of Goethe's Werther, on the one hand, and Cocteau's Les Enfants Terribles and Musil's Young Torless, on the other. Many diverse notes are struck in this first-person narration of a schoolboy's slow, puzzling awakening to maturity, to the world within and without, as he passes through successively strange encounters with his mysterious friend, Demian. The latter serves as the boy's mentor, his Vergil (in the Dantean sense), exerting now the powers of evil, now of good. The relationship between them is always hesitantly stated: on a psychological plane, an element of homoeroticism; on the social, different sequences describing the boy's various rebellions against his bourgeois background; and finally, religiously, the key motif; a kind of mystic mingling of Christianity and Buddhism. In the startling later passages, the boy, now eighteen, undergoes a romantic attachment to Demian's mother, followed by his baptism through fire at the front and the death of the wounded Demian in his presence. In the dream-like finale the boy bends over ""that dark mirror to behold my own image, now completely resembling him, my brother, my master."" It is Hesse's greatness to make what could be errant nonsense into a quite believable, fascinating, moving portrait of youth."

THE FAMILY ARSENAL by Paul Theroux

 Finished Tu 7/30/26

This is one of my ancient paperbacks that I had never read. It's a beautifully written satire about 'Terrorism'.

Set in London during the 70's and it concerns a 'family' of miscreants. 

From Kirkus:

"The popular success of The Great Railway Bazaar may well relax the cordon which has restricted most of Theroux's novels, critical admiration to the contrary. The ""family arsenal"" becomes the tag which means home to divers miscreants and militants in London: two street-smart urchins; a well-educated girl who has ripped off a Flemish painting; some IRA Provos and their pursuants; and a few fringe characters, perhaps too close to caricature for comfort or belief--an aging actress, a prim accountant, and an avid woman with ugly penchants. But at the center of everything is Valentine Hood, a former US consul sacked after punching a government official in Hue--Hood who was ""turned around"" and off by Vietnam, forged a passport for himself, and has taken sanctuary in the lower depths of Deptford. Here he hopes to fred a ""liberating fantasy you could believe in, a new world"" and although remote by temperament and retreating behind a haze of opium, he does participate in the Provo cause. Given no choice, he kills a man. At first out of pity, later out of love, he takes care of his victim's widow, Lorna, and her son. He also moves the dead man's cache of stolen TV sets to his own rooms in the communal quarters where he keeps his diminishing two kilos of opium and a few oriental objets d'art. But after Lorna is assaulted, he realizes that the ""Third World is a graveyard of idealists,"" dissolves the family arsenal, leaves the house wired for demolition, and exits from England. Within the frame of the riffraffish underworld, all spiked with color and humor and noise and cruelty, there's a seriousness of purpose. Hood, gray with indecision and a flawed hope only one step ahead of failure, could easily walk out of a Graham Greene novel. But also like Theroux's own Singapore Saint Jack, he rises and quietly shines above a milieu which has a glib amorality and bravado--""one bomb in Oxford Street is better than ten in Belfast."" Theroux is always an original and gifted entrepreneur--shafting his quick changes of life and death or just catch-as-catch-can survival with style and headlong spirit."

A RIP IN HEAVEN: A Memoir of Murder and It's Aftermath by Jeanine Cummins

 Refinished Th 7/23/26

This is a trade paperback that I bought when I visited Hot Springs, Arkansas in July of 2004. I finished the book on Sa 7/3/04, but I still remembered most of the details and I had not looked at the book in 22 years.

Two sisters are raped and thrown off the Chain of Rocks Bridge, St. Louis, MO. The two sisters were accompanied by their cousin, Tom and they were at the bridge to see a poem that one of the girls had painted. They meet four young men who were friendly at first, and then things change. 

The police immediately believe that Tom did the deed. They tell him that nobody could sustain life after a ninety foot fall. They lied to him and said it was a 90 foot drop when acctually it was only about 40 feet. 

Lie detector tests are between 40% and 90% accurate. 

This one really stuck with me. A senseless crime and the most shocking aspect is how the police mishandled the case from the beginning. 

IMAGO by Octavia E. Butler

 Finished Th 7/16/26

I bought a collection of books {THE XENOGENESIS TRILOGY} by Butler from Amazon and they arrived on April 29, 2026. 'IMAGO' is the final book in the series. 

Earth is 'saved' by an alien interstellar race. In order to 'move forward' alien DNA must be introduced to the human genetic condition. Some humans resist and others welcome the change. 

From AI Mode:

"The narrative follows Jodahs, the first Ooloi (a genderless, gene-trading third sex) born to a human mother. As Jodahs goes through its dangerous metamorphosis on a detoxified, alien-dominated Earth, it must learn to control its potent genetic and biochemical powers before becoming a living plague.

Ethical Unrest: Because Ooloi use biochemical pheromones to seduce and secure their mates, some reviewers note that this dynamic sweeps aside human autonomy. Fans find this an unsettling but brilliant way for Butler to challenge traditional concepts of romance and consent.

The Alien Dilemma: The series explores the concept that human children can only inherit the universe if they lose what makes them fundamentally human. Reviewers on platforms like Medium appreciate the first-person perspective, as it brings you directly inside the headspace of a creature reshaping human experience."

I've got more by Octavia Butler and I look forward to her novel point of view.

The book was a little hard to follow, but the issues were excellent. It had nothing to do with today's issue of men changing their sex to win medals in women's competitions. 

ROUGH MIX by Jimmy Bowen & Jim Jerome

 Refinished Fr 7/10/26

This was one of my old hardbacks and I bought the book at the library book sale on Sa 1/22/04 {it was frigid and 1/2 inch of snow). Finished on Mo 1/31/05 and again on Su 7/7/13.

A profile of a true 'mover & shaker' in the American popular music scene. Fun Fact: He gave Elvis's song, 'In The Ghetto', to Sammy Davis Jr., but he passed on it.  

From Kirkus:

"Bowen, a man who made millions of dollars, and seemingly as many enemies, with his ruthless management style (Jerry Lee Lewis purportedly wanted to kill him), describes his life in this candid, if self-aggrandizing, autobiography. Bowen is best known for his role in facilitating the recent resurgence of country music. He started his career as a bass player but quickly found greater success as a producer, working with Frank Sinatra and his ``Rat Pack.'' He displayed what was to become his signature manic drive when he created a hit for Sinatra out of ``Strangers in the Night,'' a song that had already been recorded by another singer and was about to land in stores. Bowen recorded, pressed, and delivered Sinatra's version within a nerve-wracking 24 hours, beat out the competition, and gave Sinatra's career a major mid-1960s boost. Ambition (and a perpetual yearning for new challenges) drove Bowen from one record label to another. He was almost always successful, sometimes spectacularly so. He managed six Nashville divisions—including those of Warner and MCA—in just over a decade. Whenever he took over a label, he would fire and replace much of the staff, update recording techniques (he was an early proponent of digital recording technology), and encourage artists to take responsibility for the direction and production of their music. The book provides wonderful flashes of music history throughout, including Bowen's shrewd assessments of the sprawling, frantic music business and of major rock and country singers. Country music fans will also find interest in the measured jabs aimed at Bowen's business nemesis, Garth Brooks, one of country's biggest stars. Though an unauthorized biography might be more revealing, Bowen is honest enough with his audience to scare: It's like watching a Great White from inside a shark cage—readers will be fascinated, but happy they aren't closer."

A FAN'S NOTES by FREDERICK EXLEY

 Finished Mo 7/6/26

I received this trade paperback from Amazon on Sa 6/27/26. It was a recommendation from Sam Morrill and it was a great pick.

From AI Mode:

"Frederick Exley's 1968 classic, A Fan's Notes, is widely celebrated as a tragic, brutally honest, and masterpiece of the "literature of failure". Subtitled "A Fictional Memoir", this semi-autobiographical novel traces a self-professed failure's nightmarish descent into alcoholism, mental institutions, and profound personal despair. The central framework of the book balances Exley's devastating personal unravelling with an intense, parasocial obsession with the New York Giants and their star halfback, Frank Gifford."

"Lyrical, High-Minded Prose Style: Despite depicting extreme degradation, bars, and shock treatment rooms, Exley employs a ponderous, esoteric, and fiercely eloquent vocabulary that creates a sharp, dark humor.An Anatomy of the American Dream: Critics frequently note that the book serves as a devastating critique of 1950s and 60s consumerism. It explores the heavy psychological toll placed on ordinary men who fail to achieve societal expectations of grand success."

A charcter is called 'Patty The Duke'- He's an Irishman with an upperclass demeanor. It's a pun on the 'Patty Duke Show' (I think).

Explanation of 'Insulin Shock Therapy'

So many great scenes and the 'hero' is completely unreliable. I loved the book.