the G sides

After reading Into Thin Air, Robert encouraged me to read more of Krakauer’s works. Into the Wild is the story of Chris McCandless and his journey towards an “examined life.” He graduates from college, gives away all his money and sets across the country - into the wild.
The shocking thing about […]

My knowledge of Chuck Yeager went something like this - the guy that sold AC Delco batteries, then I learned he first broke the sound barrier. I watched the movie “The Right Stuff” to learn how influential he was in the testing of rocket engines.
Stuff I’ve learned since then? He was a World […]

I thought I stray over into some fiction this time around. I almost wish I hadn’t. Eric Van Lustbader tries to pick up where Robert Ludlum left off and while he doesn’t do a terrible job…it’s not a great one either. Ever seen a great movie that did so much better than […]

Flight is the autobiography of Chris Kraft, NASA’s first flight director. I know what you’re thinking - NASA + rocket science + an administrator as the author = boring book. Wrong. Kraft tells you how it was and what he thought through every step of the program AND he names names. […]

Stephen Ambrose’s passion for World War II has gifted the world with some of the best books ever written. D-Day, Citizen Soldier, and this one - Band of Brothers. The book follows one company - Easy of the 506th Airborne Infantry - from training in Toccoa, Georgia to the end of the war. […]

This was a hard book to finish. First, Peter Shelton’s account of the 10th Mountain Division is thorough and impressive. What these men accomplished in the short amount of time they were activated plus the losses they suffered is astonishing. The men of the 10th not only served their country […]

Darrin asked me for my favorite 10 books. I hope he doesn’t abandon his Halo practice to start reading (he really needs it) but these are the books that I’ve read over and over and each time I get something new out of it.
Messy Spirituality, Mike Yaconelli
Actually anything by Mike Yaconelli. You can’t […]

I love these books and last year after I read the 7th book, I decided to reread the whole series. It’s great story telling although by this book, you would have think that Harry and his mates would have learned a few lessons of perspective and trusting their friends. They haven’t […]

A memoir by Billy “You Look Mahhvelous” Crystal. Crystal’s dad died when he was 15 years old and he figured out he only had 700 Sundays with him. Sundays were the family day - the day at the beach, to play baseball, to see the Yankees, to eat Chinese food. […]

Ever notice how one bad decision can snowball into about 15 more? Now put that theory to test on Everest at over 29,000 feet in the middle of a blizzard. That’s this book.
Jon Krakauer tries to make sense of the tragedy on Everest in 1996 with this book. That task alone is […]