Quick Stops

Via Instapundit, I see some poor mope compares Obama to Truman and actually believes it's possible The One can win the same way Give 'Em Hell Harry did.

Perhaps.

But not until The One mans up and changes the nameplate on his desk from "I Never Met A Buck I Couldn't Pass!" to:


Between you and me, I don't think that's at all possible.
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Oh, man! I love the whole Jack Reacher series, and this news is so wrong on so many levels I don't even know where to begin:

He is certainly a huge celebrity, but as far as size goes, Tom Cruise is not exactly big.

However the 49-year-old movie star's next leading role is playing giant Jack Reacher in the film adaptation of Lee Child's thriller book One Shot.

Check out Reacher's stats, per the novelist himself, here. If you can, with a straight face, 'splain me how they can turn the Poison Dwarf into that towering giant of a man, I'll buy your cocktails for a month.

Count me among the many who will be boycotting this one.
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Book Your Ticket

I can't see myself breaking the 200 book mark for 2010, but I'll come pretty close. Here's November's list:

November – 14/162

Sunday’s Child, Tom Lewis*

Hawke: A Novel, Ted Bell*

The Ghost Shrink, The Accidental Gigolo & the Poltergeist Accountant, Vivi Andrews[1]*

The Dirty Life: On Farming, Food and Love, Kristin Kimball[2]*

Breakfast at Tiffany’s, Truman Capote

We Bought a Zoo, Benjamin Mee

Hour of the Hunter, J.A. Jance*

One Hundred Dollar Misunderstanding, Robert Gover*

The Reluctant Mage, Karen Miller*

Worth Dying For: A Reacher Novel, Lee Child*

Liar, Liar, K.J. Larsen*

The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid, Bill Bryson[3]*

Decision Points, George W. Bush*

A Chesapeake Shores Christmas, Sherryl Woods*

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[1] Yes, it’s as silly as it sounds, but what’s wrong with a little laughter every now and then?

[2] I loved this book. There’s a relentless pacing that really gives you the sense of the whirlwind that hit Kristin Kimball and changed her life forever in this true story.

[3] Recommended to me by John Cox, it’s an absolute delight, especially for anyone born in the 1950’s.

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While I'm on the subject of books, if you're considering getting or giving a Kindle for Christmas, here's some things you should keep in mind:

There are tons of free books out there.

Kindle does stuff beyond just acting as an e-reader.

If you have friends or family who you really trust, you can share a Kindle account and, thus, share books.

You don't need to own a Kindle to read Kindle books -- you just need one the free Kindle apps.

You can send Kindle books as gifts via email.

I have the second generation Kindle (Holy crap! I'm sorry I missed this deal, as $89 for a Kindle I'd have bought one for every member of my family), but I bought my Sainted Sister-in-Law the new wi-fi version for her birthday, and I'm bowled over by how much smaller and lighter the darned thing is -- and it holds more books, to boot!

They're holding a $100 gift card give-away for 30 users a day between now and Christmas over at the Kindle Facebook site.

Finally, keep track of other Amazon.com lightning deals here.

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P.S. -- Seems like I'm in good company on this keeping a list business.

Book Your Ticket

I'm a little over a third of the way through Lee Child's sixth Jack Reacher book, Without Fail, and, for those of you who read them as religiously as I do, I have two questions:

When did Reacher start wearing a watch???

And why?

He never did in past novels, because he never needed one. Or did I miss something?

This is bugging the absolute crap out of me. Argh!

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Update:

For those who were wondering how I can read so many books -- I can't say for sure... but it might just be the voices in my head.