'Israel' by Fred Lawrence

I said I was interested in reading more about the birth and subsequent growing pains of the nation of Israel and I have begun reading more about it. 'Israel' by Fred Lawrence is not a fantastic read. Over 800 pages in length, it walks us through the pogroms in Russia, the Labor strikes in Early 20th century America, and, unfortunately, all 50 years preceding Israel's independence. Although the breadth of the story is interesting from a sheer desire to learn more about historical eras, the lack of specificity in the battles to save the fledgling nation was disappointing. Lawrence was more focused on demonstating the parallels between the separated families progressing in America and Palestine.

We start by meeting Abe Herodetsky, an orphaned Russian teenager, who takes in a fellow orphan 10 years his minor. This child, Haim Kolevetsky, grows in his stead and when war comes to Russia they head in different directions. Haim departs for Palestine with his Zionist ideals and Abe intends to strike off to America in hopes of a equitable opportunity to find success. We follow the two men as they find successes and heartbreak in their seperate lives. Children come and the story picks up in their hands. All characters accomplish great things but the emphasis in the family plot is tiresome and doesn't provide the intimacy to the strugglees that I crave.

Altogether, a new perspective but I want to find a different view that will put me in the battles against the Arab Nations as Israel struggles in it's infancy.

No more Lawrence for me. Just didn't satisfy me the way I was hoping it would.

'Drop Shot' by Harlan Coben

The characters we meet that exist solely for these plotlines are intriguing and well constructed. We like them, we don't trust them, we hate the fact that we like them. Whatever we are supposed to feel towards them, we feel as per the author's desire. Duane Richwood is a tennis stud and we like him even though we don't trust him. This book catalogues his meteoric rise to the top of the tennis world and the trouble that comes when he finds his past is about to be revealed.

Primarily, we follow Myron Bolitar: injured professional athlete turned Sports agent extrordinare via federal officer. He is big, trained and smart with a conscience to boot. He gets involved to set matters right and he sees it through to the end, regardless of the consequences. We catch snippets of those in his life as well. His girlfriend/soulmate; Jessica, his assistant/partner in justice; Esperanza, his true crime fighting financial wizard best friend; Win, his mother, and his arch nemeses, the Ache brothers of TruSports.

This was very clearly, yet another chapter in the Myron Bolitar series. Evident from the label on the front telling me that it was a Myron Bolitar novel, it was also very obvious from the references made to prior interactions. Altogether, this was a great mix of new, exciting plotlines with just enough 'inside references' to keep the Myron Bolitar fans feeling happy they read the novels in order.


Quick, great dialogue, enough twists and hints to keep you guessing. All together I like Coben's style alot. I would love to read more of his work. This 340 page book took about 5 hours to chew through and I enjoyed the process immensely.

'In Cold Blood' by Truman Capote

An accurate and stunningly descriptive retelling of the events surrounding the killing of the Clutter family. We start the novel by meeting the Clutters. We walk around in their world for a day seeing how they interact with and affect those around them. We are reminded that this is their last day. Later, we meet the agents involved with solving the crime. We see their impressions, their feelings, and their game plan regarding the case. Lastly, we meet the offenders. We learn a great deal about them and we are walked through the crime moment by moment.

Capote started writing short stories and when this novel came out he skyrocketed to fame and celebrity. He truly did his work on this one. His interviews must have been incredibly thorough as he provides great imagery in the way people remember the Clutters on their fateful last day alive and the details we learn about the assailants early years.

This book will leave you rattled. You will feel simultaneously appalled at the failures of the legal system and relieved that this failure provided seemingly positive results.

I would be curious to see what Capote's other works are like. Certainly he would try to match the mood of this novel but I wonder how his skills translate in other mediums.
I may pick up another of his writings.