HillDweller
Well-Known Member
Having nothing to read would be torture to me.
Reading Lamps and Smoking Jackets
- Thread starter Knucklehead
- Start date
The Voyageur
Europe demanded fine furs from North America, and paid a fortune for them. From the time of the earliest settlers to the English and French colonies, the practice of trading cheaply manufactured "trade goods" (knives, metal pots, iron ax heads, alcohol, textiles, etc.) purchased from Europe to the Native American tribes, in exchange for their harvest of animal pelts, was a profitable enterprise of eye-popping proportions—think John Jacob Astor. For the basins of the upper Missouri River and Mississippi River, as well as the extensive river systems of Canada (from Hudson's Bay or the settlements along the St. Lawrence), the only practical, long-distance transport of cargo was by water, until the advent of railroads in the mid 19th century.
For over 200 years, the primary water transport in the northern reaches consisted of light-weight, but fragile, birch bark canoes. These required skilled men to paddle them, and repair them, as well as haul them (along with all the cargo) over each of the countless land portages that bypassed rapids obstructing the rivers and creeks. These workers came to be known as Voyageurs.
This book, by Grace Lee Nute, tells the history, traditions and tales. Written in the 1930s, its writing style is a bit stodgy and romanticized, but the history is real. It covers not only the practices and difficulties of the trade, but also Voyageur participation in various colonial wars, and their contribution to the ultimate settling of the western continent. It also discusses their foods and methods of preparation.
And it's a story of tobacco pipe smokers, who smoked while paddling, smoked while climbing up or down the portages, and smoked at every resting place (when not eating or sleeping). Part of their advance pay consisted of large carrottes of tobacco.
There is one lengthy chapter covering the (folk) songs of the Voyageurs, which they often sang while paddling, to synchronize their strokes. I'm sure that is a valuable contribution to preserving the history. Unfortunately, most of the lyrics are in broken French, and only a few of them are translated into English. A small number of them include a music score. I suggest just skipping that chapter (without loss of continuity), unless you are interested in historical musicology.
Dutifully, I smoked my Ropp Canadienne, wore a knitted, sock hat, and a bandana around my neck, while writing this review.
Bob
Europe demanded fine furs from North America, and paid a fortune for them. From the time of the earliest settlers to the English and French colonies, the practice of trading cheaply manufactured "trade goods" (knives, metal pots, iron ax heads, alcohol, textiles, etc.) purchased from Europe to the Native American tribes, in exchange for their harvest of animal pelts, was a profitable enterprise of eye-popping proportions—think John Jacob Astor. For the basins of the upper Missouri River and Mississippi River, as well as the extensive river systems of Canada (from Hudson's Bay or the settlements along the St. Lawrence), the only practical, long-distance transport of cargo was by water, until the advent of railroads in the mid 19th century.
For over 200 years, the primary water transport in the northern reaches consisted of light-weight, but fragile, birch bark canoes. These required skilled men to paddle them, and repair them, as well as haul them (along with all the cargo) over each of the countless land portages that bypassed rapids obstructing the rivers and creeks. These workers came to be known as Voyageurs.
This book, by Grace Lee Nute, tells the history, traditions and tales. Written in the 1930s, its writing style is a bit stodgy and romanticized, but the history is real. It covers not only the practices and difficulties of the trade, but also Voyageur participation in various colonial wars, and their contribution to the ultimate settling of the western continent. It also discusses their foods and methods of preparation.
And it's a story of tobacco pipe smokers, who smoked while paddling, smoked while climbing up or down the portages, and smoked at every resting place (when not eating or sleeping). Part of their advance pay consisted of large carrottes of tobacco.
There is one lengthy chapter covering the (folk) songs of the Voyageurs, which they often sang while paddling, to synchronize their strokes. I'm sure that is a valuable contribution to preserving the history. Unfortunately, most of the lyrics are in broken French, and only a few of them are translated into English. A small number of them include a music score. I suggest just skipping that chapter (without loss of continuity), unless you are interested in historical musicology.
Dutifully, I smoked my Ropp Canadienne, wore a knitted, sock hat, and a bandana around my neck, while writing this review.
Bob
HillDweller
Well-Known Member
I'll have to look this one up. I don't mind stodgy and romanticized.
Redleaf
Well-Known Member
“Dutifully, I smoked my Ropp Canadienne, wore a knitted, sock hat, and a bandana around my neck, while writing this review.”
Just an FYI for all our American friends. A knitted sock hat has a name in Canada. It is typically referred to as a touque. Even as I type the word I find myself in the age old fight about the correct spelling of the word.
A 2013 survey of 6500 showed many ways of spelling the word.
What do you call your cap?
Touque 40.14%
Tuque 17.73%
Toque 35.51%
Took 0.34%
Beanie 0.8%
Hat 3.83%
Cap 0.7%
Other 0.95%
Just an FYI for all our American friends. A knitted sock hat has a name in Canada. It is typically referred to as a touque. Even as I type the word I find myself in the age old fight about the correct spelling of the word.
A 2013 survey of 6500 showed many ways of spelling the word.
What do you call your cap?
Touque 40.14%
Tuque 17.73%
Toque 35.51%
Took 0.34%
Beanie 0.8%
Hat 3.83%
Cap 0.7%
Other 0.95%
Over Six Centuries
The period of Classical Greece was only about 200 years (5th and 4th centuries BC). The Roman Empire lasted about 500 years (27 BC – 476 AD). The Abbasid caliphate, with its capital in Baghdad, stretched on for about 500 years (750–1258 AD), until it was overthrown by the Mongols. The great Byzantine Empire (the "Eastern Roman Empire") endured for over 1100 years (330-1453 AD), was sacked by Western Christian knights during the aborted 4th Crusade (~1204 AD), and lapsed into decline and decay over its last two centuries, with Constantinople finally falling to the Ottoman Turks in 1453.
The Ottoman Empire, centered in Asia Minor—today's Turkey, endured for over 600 years (1299-1922 AD), extending into the first quarter of the 20th century, stretching from the Dark Ages of Europe, through the Renaissance, the dispersal of tobacco from South America throughout the world, the Industrial Revolution, and into the Modern Era. Its demise came after World War 1 ("the war to end all wars").
The Ottoman Empire at its greatest extent. By Chamboz, CC BY-SA 4.0.
This history is a hefty book of over 600 pages. The writing by the Scottish historian, John Patrick Douglas Balfour (3rd Baron Kinross), is excellent. The story, chapter after chapter, is as engrossing as any action thriller. The page count includes numerous full-page pictures and several maps.
Bob
The period of Classical Greece was only about 200 years (5th and 4th centuries BC). The Roman Empire lasted about 500 years (27 BC – 476 AD). The Abbasid caliphate, with its capital in Baghdad, stretched on for about 500 years (750–1258 AD), until it was overthrown by the Mongols. The great Byzantine Empire (the "Eastern Roman Empire") endured for over 1100 years (330-1453 AD), was sacked by Western Christian knights during the aborted 4th Crusade (~1204 AD), and lapsed into decline and decay over its last two centuries, with Constantinople finally falling to the Ottoman Turks in 1453.
The Ottoman Empire, centered in Asia Minor—today's Turkey, endured for over 600 years (1299-1922 AD), extending into the first quarter of the 20th century, stretching from the Dark Ages of Europe, through the Renaissance, the dispersal of tobacco from South America throughout the world, the Industrial Revolution, and into the Modern Era. Its demise came after World War 1 ("the war to end all wars").
The Ottoman Empire at its greatest extent. By Chamboz, CC BY-SA 4.0.
"On Murad's assassination his elder son was instantly proclaimed his successor, as Bayezid I, here on the battlefield of Kosovo. In response to pressure from the state council, fearing conflict over the succession, his first act as Sultan, over his father's dead body, was to order the death, by strangulation with a bowstring, of his younger brother. This was Yakub, his fellow-commander in the battle, who had won distinction in the field and popularity with his troops. Bayezid thus initiated a practice of imperial fratricide which was to root itself all too permanently in the history of the Ottoman dynasty. It was based on the argument that assassination is preferable to sedition, as so often practiced by a sultan's brothers, and was conveniently excused for Bayezid by a text from the Koran: 'So often, as they return to sedition, they shall be subverted therein; and if they depart not from you, and offer you peace and restrain their hands from warring against you, take them and kill them wheresoever ye find them.' "
This history is a hefty book of over 600 pages. The writing by the Scottish historian, John Patrick Douglas Balfour (3rd Baron Kinross), is excellent. The story, chapter after chapter, is as engrossing as any action thriller. The page count includes numerous full-page pictures and several maps.
"To the northeast beyond the Danube lay Wallachia ruled by...Vlad Dracul, otherwise Dracula, one of the monsters of history whose cruelties, far exceeding those familiar enough in that age of brutality, made of him also one of the devils of legend."
...
"Vlad Dracul then crossed the Danube into Bulgaria, at the head of an army with which he ravaged Ottoman territory and massacred much of its population.
At this the Sultan, determined on vengeance, led a large army into Wallachia. In the course of the campaign they came upon a 'forest of corpses,' in which there rotted the remains of some twenty thousand Bulgarians and Ottomans impaled on stakes and crucified— a grim example of the mass executions which Dracul liked to stage for his pleasure and for the edification of his neighbors."
Bob
HillDweller
Well-Known Member
Sounded good enough I checked ebay and ordered a copy.
Reading "A History of Deeds Done Beyond the Sea" by William of Tyre around 1180's. The book is about the Kingdom of Jerusalem after the First Crusade. I just downloaded it so no review yet. Used copies of the two volumes run in the thousands of dollars. I found it on archive.org for free.
Wikipedia of William of Tyre
en.wikipedia.org
the book:
Wikipedia of William of Tyre
William of Tyre - Wikipedia
the book:
That's pretty wild. 1129 pages, being 73 MB as a pdf. I'll save that to read in the future.
Over a decade ago, my son gave me a boxed copy of the Taschen version of "A Chronicle of the Crusades", 2 volumes. The original is an illuminated, hand calligraphy work written in medieval French. One volume is a gorgeous rendition of the original, while the other volume is the same text in English translation.
When I told my son that I had finished reading the English volume, he criticized me for not tackling the French.
Bob
Over a decade ago, my son gave me a boxed copy of the Taschen version of "A Chronicle of the Crusades", 2 volumes. The original is an illuminated, hand calligraphy work written in medieval French. One volume is a gorgeous rendition of the original, while the other volume is the same text in English translation.
A CHRONICLE OF THE CRUSADES. Les Passages d Outremer - The Expeditions to Outremer. Facsimile of the manuscript of 1474 illuminated by Jean Colombe. [With] The Expeditions to Outremer, an Unabridged, Annotated Edition with Commentary. Thierry Delcour
Hardcover - Taschen - 2009 - 2 vols. 4to. 236pp. + Facsimile of the manuscript of 1474 illuminated by Jean Colombe. Profusely illus. throughout in colour. Fleur-de-lis pattern to e.ps., very good in original gilt lettered dark red boards with coloured illus. to upper boards, together in sl...
www.abebooks.com
Bob
BarG
Founding Member
I'm gonna read the broken gun by my favorite Louis Lamour, as soon as I find my glasses, my niece gave it to me for Christmas, (not knowing I've read every Louis Lamour book ever wrote); passed down from my grandad. As soon as I have good lighting and find my glasses, lol
I put rawhide as ring tone this week and now my wife can't get it out of her head, lol
Everything aside, how you been doing, I hope you been staying frosty but not freezing. You big ole knuckle head
I have been stockpiling lumber since I got my saw mill, it's taken away from tobacco growing, I still have a shit load I grew. It makes it hard to talk on the forum. You guys have taken this forum to new levels. We miss our old compadres but life goes on.
Uh
I put rawhide as ring tone this week and now my wife can't get it out of her head, lol
Everything aside, how you been doing, I hope you been staying frosty but not freezing. You big ole knuckle head
I have been stockpiling lumber since I got my saw mill, it's taken away from tobacco growing, I still have a shit load I grew. It makes it hard to talk on the forum. You guys have taken this forum to new levels. We miss our old compadres but life goes on.
For school students (and most other folks) in the United States, the American Revolution happened in the iconic year of 1776. The events are related as iconic. The personalities are iconic. The date celebrated each year (July 4) is iconic.
But the Revolution began during the previous years, and lasted almost a decade. Kevin Phillips' book is not light reading. If your preference for history is to look into the kitchen, and see how the sausage actually is made, then this book is an excellent source.
During the time frame of the Revolution, the colonies were bickering with one another over dueling territorial claims. The population (excluding the black slaves imported from Africa) was mostly made up of recent arrivals from different parts of Europe. They differed in religious affiliation, political leanings, aspirations and means of livelihood. And most differed from the established, coastal elite. Many of the immigrants were members of dissenting religions. Large numbers came as indentured servants.
And huge numbers of folks arriving in the northeast ports migrated down the Great Wagon Road, through western Virginia, and down into the Appalachian range of the deep south.
Were they inspired by the high rhetoric of the well educated and the published opinionizers? Well...most were illiterate, and resided a week or more of travel from the cities of the coast.
In short, the royalists and the so-called patriots were mingled in every colony, every county (or parish), every town and even in the smallest of villages. Standing militias, a heritage of the wars against native tribes, the French and the Spanish, were often officered by loyalists, while the troops themselves might be patriots. It was an ugly mess.
On top of this, communication between the colonies and Great Britain was S...L...O...W. During the winter months, unfavorable trade winds in the North Atlantic could lead to months of delay between dispatched orders from London, and their receipt by British governors or generals in the colonies. And likewise, news of events occurring within the colonies was often out of sync with activities and decisions made in London.
Trade wars, religious conflict, the unlawful formation of self-governments, and the relocation of colonial capitals away from the hazard of coastal bombardment by British ships— All of this awaits your reading leisure.
Bob
ISBN-13: 978-0525521549
This is a delightful read. David A. Price narrates the almost accidental invention of the digital computer by the British code breakers of World War 2. At under 200 pages, it's also a quick read.
You may be aware of the breaking of the Nazi Enigma cryptography machine. But that was a relatively simple, analog machine. The work covered by this book remained a classified secret until the 21st century.
As someone who was offered an extracurricular high school course (in 10th grade) on the subject of Boolean Algebra, in 1963, I was surprised to learn from this book that a mere 20 years earlier, Boolean Algebra (essentially, binary math—just ones and zeros) did not exist as a subject matter even at colleges and universities. [I still have that thin paperback on Boolean Algebra on a shelf in my study, 60+ years later.]
If you are a fan of superb spy stories, or if you are a true computer geek, you will smile many times while reading this. As is often the case, the genuinely revolutionary, programmable digital computer was invented not by highly educated insiders, but by an outsider—a "blue-collar" worker for the British telephone company.
Back in 1979, I read Winston Churchill's 6 volume history of World War 2. There was not the slightest mention of anything that is related in Geniuses At War, even though Churchill served as the Prime Minister during that entire span of time. In the present book, I learned why it was missing from his story.
Bob
After having this novel languishing in the "to be read" stack for two years, I finally started reading it. It's not in line with my concept of a novel. Although loosely based on historical events from around the year 100 AD onward, it was "modernized" in novel form to more of a medieval context. Also, characters (a bazillion characters so far) are introduced in family groups, citing their formal names, personal names and popular names—for each person. The result is that I usually have no idea who is acting in a particular scene. It reminds me of the experience of watching a crowd of strangers play a multi-character video game. I follow the movements, the ambushes, the plots, the combat scenes, with no inkling of a protagonist or antagonist.
The two volumes together add up to 1360 pages. It's going to be a bit before I get to it.
The result is that I find its 6-10 page chapters to be perfect reading, in dim lighting, sitting in a stuffed chair, before going to bed at night. The action is just enough to hold my interest, while my mind and body prepare to sign-off for the night.
Bob
wruk53
Well-Known Member
This is a really good read. Especially if you are old enough to remember a lot of the events that occurred that year. It's a novel, but it contains a lot of factual information. In 1968 I was 15 years old, so I remember very well some of the God-awful things that happened that year. I registered for the draft a few years after that but was not selected. Shortly after, the Army went to an all-volunteer system, and I was Damned glad of it. Every evening, I would watch the National news and they would always give the casualty results for the day, usually very lopsided in our favor, but not always. I knew several people that were a few years older than me that had served and a few that were killed or badly injured in Vietnam. This is one of those books that I will pull out every couple of years and re-read.
Attachments
1968 book by Joe Haldeman
www.thriftbooks.com
khiddy
New Member
Last month I started reading the Aubrey/Maturin series by Patrick O'Brian, beginning with Master and Commander. A FB acquaintance in town invited folks to read the series together and meet once a month for rum and conversation. I decided to listen to the audiobook versions, and I found myself deeply engrossed from minute one, though honestly most of the technical details wash over me. The reader (Patrick Tull) does such a great job with pacing that he conveys the excitement of the moment, and it really draws you in. Our second meeting is next week, and I finished listening to the book last week, so I unfortunately have to pace my own listening to not get too far ahead of the group and risk losing my thoughts for the monthly meetings!
So, in the meantime, I'm poring over A Sea of Words, which is a glossary of terms used in the O'Brian novel series, along with some explanatory chapters about British naval structure and 19th-century medicine. Very helpful.
So, in the meantime, I'm poring over A Sea of Words, which is a glossary of terms used in the O'Brian novel series, along with some explanatory chapters about British naval structure and 19th-century medicine. Very helpful.
From two decades ago, starring Russell Crowe:
en.wikipedia.org
Wait until you've completed the book series, before watching the movie.
Bob
EDIT: Welcome to the forum, @khiddy. Feel free to introduce yourself in the Introduce Yourself forum.
Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World - Wikipedia
Wait until you've completed the book series, before watching the movie.
Bob
EDIT: Welcome to the forum, @khiddy. Feel free to introduce yourself in the Introduce Yourself forum.
oldfellainspain
Well-Known Member
I've read the books and seen the film. I enjoyed both. Two small, east coast of Spain villages are mentioned in the books, Javea (Xabia, in the local dialect) and Denia. These were where English ships lurked to attack Spanish ships as they sailed up the Med. Denia even has an overgrown English cemetery for the odd sailor or two that died there. I live in Javea (Xabia) old town, which up until a century ago, was a walled town with an elaborate street system to confuse pirates. The church is a fortress church for the same reason.
Whew! Four-and-a-half months after beginning the first volume, I finished reading the second volume of Romance of the Three Kingdoms last night. I can see why it has remained popular reading in China. The messages it delivered to me are that:
- people's behavior has not changed over the millennia
- there are always good leaders and bad leaders
- there are brilliant advisors who are occasionally wrong
- there are stupid advisors who are occasionally right
- power corrupts
- corruption leads to defeat
- there are always those who remain loyal
- there are always those who betray
- most ordinary soldiers have no choice
- most folks readily engage in magical thinking
- all governments, dynasties, kingdoms, nations—all eventually fail
Bob
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