by Lionel Shriver

I am a really big Lionel Shriver fan. I’ve liked some of her books more than others. But I love her for being a High Concept author. Here’s an alternative unfolding of history where it’s become verboten to believe that there are any differences in cognitive ability among anyone. Everyone is as smart as everyone else; it’s called the Mental Parity movement, and to say words like “dumb” or “stupid” is as unimaginable as our using the “n-word” is here and now.

You can almost buy that it’s possible. But things go so far in this alt-universe as to allow unqualified people to be tree surgeons and even people surgeons. Naturally, it doesn’t go well.

The protagonist of MANIA is Pearson, a woman with three kids; the older two are “smart”, whereas the younger one, Lucy, is definitely different. The older two were conceived via artificial insemination and have a father with a genius IQ. Lucy is the biological daughter of Pearson’s partner Wade. Wade’s wonderful and easy-going and a manual laborer, not a brainiac kind of guy; and Lucy, being an ordinary little girl, suffers for not being seriously taught anything in school because of the Mental Parity movement.

Pearson’s obvious favoring of the older kids and outright dislike of Lucy (“Lucy bored me”) was never resolved and hard to take. Look, saying that you kid is literally dumb, in a serious way, within her earshot, is Bad even in real life; it’s not a crazy Mental Parity thing to say so. Of course the kid hated her and the older siblings, and acted out.

And Wade never took issue with this? I never got any feeling of actual love among any of these family members, come to think of it.

There’s a lot more going on in the book. Worth reading.

by W. Somerset Maugham

This was kind of a silly book. Pity sex goes sour, and we have to dispose of a dead body. I didn’t like spending time with the main character, or any of the other characters either, living or dead. But I did want to see how it would turn out, and it was short and to the point; that should count for something.

by Charls M. Schulz

1957-1958 – this might be Peak Peanuts. I think it’s Peak Snoopy for sure. He’s still a dog.

If I keep reading every year in order, I may be able to pinpoint the exact moment Snoopy jumps the shark.

by Walter M. Miller Jr.

“We are the centuries… We bury your dead and their reputations. We bury you. We are the centuries.”

This is a classic (1960) post-nuclear-apocalyptic tale that takes the long, long view.

I’m still trying to figure out the ending.

by Erik Larson

Not really my kind of book (a book club pick). It was hard to follow without zoning out. By page 422, I’m like, “Bomb the fort already!!!”

The indignation of the South at Lincoln’s election & the North’s attitude towards slavery and southerners “way of life”, and their sense of “honor”, reminds me of MAGA folks today. They feel looked down on.