Righteous   Joe Ide
Second novel in the I.Q. series about the Sherlock Holmes figure based in the hood. This time he’s rescuing a friend’s sister from Triads while figuring out who killed his brother eight years ago. Language and dialogue aren’t quite as inventive and authentic this time, but the plot and characterization are good, the narrative comes together nicely, and, unfortunately, the excellent ending made me wish the next book in the series was already available. Enjoyable, entertaining read, like the protagonist and series quite a bit.

The Fifties   David Halberstam
Well-written, overview history of the decade when the United States became the country it is now. While not exhaustive, this is a thorough account focused on the people who embodied the staggering postwar affluence that generated suburbs, rock and roll, malls, big cars, fast food, McCarthyism, the pill, the beginnings of the women’s movement, huge Hollywood stars like Brando, Dean, and Monroe, the Cold War, the Korean War, Ike, desegregation, the generative stages of the Civil Rights Movement, the great migration, and the “changes that were taking place every day in more subtle ways because of the ferocious commercial drive of television and its effect upon both consumers and industry.” A very, very good book, informative and readable, really glad I got to it.

Duino Elegies   Rainer Maria Rilke
Very nice dual-language edition. Nearly every phrase is exquisite, even in Stephen Mitchell’s translation. Again, a little astonished that a person can write with such beauty. This time, except for some well-loved passages, it was like I hadn’t read them before. Still love these poems, always will.

                        “Ah, but what can we take along
into that other realm? Not the art of looking,
which is learned so slowly, and nothing that happened here. Nothing.
The sufferings, then. And, above all, the heaviness,
and the long experience of love...”

                                            "The Ninth Elegy"