Lost in Shangri-La by Mitchell Zuckoff (CBR-V #41)

Cannonball Read V: Book #41/52
Published: 2011
Pages: 384
Genre: Nonfiction/History

 Lost in Shangri-la is a non-fiction account of a group of soldiers stationed in New Guinea during World War II. In the middle of the island was a flat valley that was home to thousands of native tribes that had never seen the outside world. During a scenic tour over the valley, an American plane crashed into a mountainside, killing most of the passengers. One of the survivors was a member of the WOC (Women's Army Corps) named Margaret Hastings. She, along with the two other survivors, John McCollum (who lost his twin brother in the crash) and Kenneth Decker, have to survive in the jungle amidst possibly hostile native tribes until they can be rescued. On top of everything, they are doing all of this with horrific burns and injuries from the crash. 

A huge problem is that the valley they crashed in is impossible to land a plane on. Hiking miles and miles through rough terrain isn't an option with their injuries. They end up being stranded for weeks while rescue missions are figured out. The stranded trio ends up befriending some people in a local native tribe and I found those parts to be some of the most fascinating in the book. 


Although this is a very interesting story, I kind of felt like it would make a better article than book. It was fairly short, but got bogged down with boring details that seemed like filler (did we REALLY need that many mind-numbing details on the history of every aircraft that made an appearance in the story?). However, if you skim over those parts the survival story is a fascinating one that's worth reading.

Not Without My Sister by Kristina Jones, Celeste Jones, & Juliana Buhring (CBR-V #37)

Cannonball Read V: Book #37/52
Published: 2008
Pages: 432
Genre: Nonfiction/Memoir

Like other people have said, the title of this book is a little misleading. The book does follow three half-sisters who grew up in the Children of God cult. However, they are in and out of each others lives and barely know each other, much less refuse to leave without each other. The first half of the book is divided into three large chunks with the background of each sister - Celeste, Kristina, and Juliana. The second half weaved the sisters' stories together and quickly changed narrators every few pages. I found the second half was really hard to keep track of everyone because their backgrounds, childhoods, and family members were very similar. 

The content of the book itself was horrifying. All three sisters were subjected to all sorts of abuse, from sexual to emotional to physical. This particular cult is notorious for it's validation of pedophilia (they believe humans of any age should be free to express their love sexually with anyone else). It's very hard to read at times what they girls went through and how they struggled to adjust to normal society after being brainwashed their entire life. 


The book gave a great overall history of the girls' lives from childhood to adulthood, but my only complaint was that the three girls all had very similar stories. I still can't tell you which things happened to which girls - they all just sort of blurred together into one single story. I'd recommend this book if you want a more personal memoir of the Children of God cult, and The Nameless by Natalie Sauret if you want a memoir with a more in-depth background of the cult itself.

Locked Up in La Mesa by Steve Peterson & Eldon Asp (CBR-V #36)

Cannonball Read V: Book #36/52
Published: 2011
Pages: 230
Genre: Nonfiction/Memoir

In the 70's, Steve Peterson got arrested for smuggling marijuana across the Mexican border. He ended up in a notoriously bad Mexican prison for almost a year due to the large amount of pot he was smuggling. La Mesa reminded me of the South American prison in the tv show Prison Break. Inmates were sort of thrown in there and left to their own devices. Some inmates had their entire families living in there with them. A hierarchy was structured with the "leader" of the prison living in an onsite house with a jacuzzi. The inmates could buy property from him (Peterson bought a small cell with cardboard walls for a few hundred dollars) and he controlled all the buying/selling/trading that went on within the prison.

The prison system itself was really interesting, but I felt like the author was focused more on telling a bunch of random crazy stories rather than giving us a good background on the prison or even himself. You know how you go to a party and there's that one guy who dominates the conversation with his crazy stories? It's interesting at first, but after a few stories your eyes sort of glaze over and your mind starts wandering - that's sort of what this book was like. Every chapter was a different story and nothing was really cohesive besides the fact that they all took place in this prison. It was just a collection of outlandish stories. I have no doubt that they really happened, but I would have preferred a little more background and cohesiveness overall.


Another sort of nit-picky thing was the overuse of certain words or phrases. Almost every page had a sentence that ended with "...or whatever." and it got really old after about the first chapter. The whole book was a very conversational style, but maybe a little TOO informal (like I said above, it was really like listening to a guy tell you stories at a party, complete with common oral sentence fillers). But it was a quick and easy read if you're at all interested in the Mexican prison system of the 1970s, just don't expect a thought-provoking novel.

Texts From Bennett by Mac Lethal (CBR-V #35)

Cannonball Read V: Book #35/52
Published: 2013
Pages: 320
Genre: Humor/Nonfiction

**I received an advanced copy of this book from NetGalley. It is expected to be released on September 3, 2013.**

I don't read a lot of humor books, but I'm a fan of Mac Lethal's Tumblr blog, Texts From Bennett. The blog is a series of texts between Mac and his younger cousin, Bennett. Bennett is a wanna-be gangster (he thinks he's in the Crips gang) from Kansas City. Mac is actually a legit hip-hop artist (which I had no idea about until I read the book), but doesn't play into the rapper stereotype, much to Bennett's chagrin. 

I always wondered how Mac and Bennett's relationship was formed. They seem so different, including a fairly big age gap between the two (Bennet is a teenager and Mac is 30 in the book). That's where this book excelled. I went into it expecting a bunch of short stories and jokes at Bennett's expense and actually found a great story about two very different people becoming great friends. 

Bennett and Mac are cousins (their moms are sisters), but they didn't see each other much until Mac invited Bennett and his mom to temporarily live with him when they got kicked out of their house. Mac's Aunt Lillian is a super nice woman who unfortunately self-medicates with a prescription pill addiction and brings along her deadbeat boyfriend who she admits she only keeps around because he has a van. 

The story flows along well and Mac is a very good writer. It's not choppy like I'd expect a book based on text messages would be. I also liked that he didn't use Bennett and his friends as merely punchlines of a joke. Of course he describes the ridiculous, stereotypical way these kids dress (Bennett's sometimes-girlfriend Mercedes wears "gold hoops that are the size of a baby's head"), but you fall in love with these people. And I loved how the story shifts halfway through and has BENNETT actually helping out Mac with how to meet women (Bennett has a list).


Texts From Bennett is funny, but has a lot of heart as well. It's much more than just funny texts and a must-read for fans of the blog.

Inside Scientology by Janet Reitman (CBR-V #31)

Cannonball Read V: Book #31/52
Published: 2011
Pages: 444
Genre: Nonfiction

I'm officially burned out on Scientology books. I actually bought this one before Going Clear, but figured since I already bought it, I might as well read it to. I figured it would be pretty redundant since Going Clear was so thorough, but I was surprised to find some new stuff in Janet Reitman's book.

I'm just going to say this again: Scientology is scary. I don't really care what religion people want to believe in, but when a religion refuses to allow people to leave that's when it starts crossing the line over into cult territory (at least for me). Although Scientology constantly is refuting the claims of abuse from ex-members, I'm finding it really hard to believe it's not true with all the first-hand accounts. And those are just from the people they haven't scared or paid off to keep quiet. 

That said, the history of Scientology and it's founder, L. Ron Hubbard is pretty fascinating stuff. While Going Clear was a very dense book full of facts and figures, Inside Scientology is a more personal account. It's written more like a magazine article than a term paper (Janet Reitman is an editor for Rolling Stone). Both books were great accounts, but this is probably the more "user friendly" of the two books. The journalistic approach makes for easy reading in Inside Scientology.

The book did go into much more detail with several stories that were skimmed over in Going Clear. For instance, the tragic story of Lisa McPherson. Lisa was a scientologist who was declared "clear" by David Miscagive himself. Being "clear" is when a person is declared free of negative emotions and past trauma and a huge thing in Scientology. David Miscagive has been the head of Scientology since L. Ron Hubbard died in the 80's. Lisa had a mental breakdown very soon after being declared "clear" and it was a public relations nightmare for Scientology. In trying to cover it up and "cure" her, Lisa McPherson ended up dead. Enough witnesses have come forward since then to paint a pretty good picture of what happened. 


The overall picture of the religion was pretty much the same as any other book I've read on the subject, but this book definitely took a more journalistic approach and included stories from many ex-members. I would probably read this one before Going Clear and if you are still interested, read it for a more in depth look at the religion itself.

Beyond Belief by Jenna Miscavige Hill (CBR-V #28)

Cannonball Read V: Book #28/52
Published: 2013
Pages: 416
Genre: Memoir/Nonfiction

Before reading this book, I thought for some reason that Jenna Miscavige Hill was Scientology leader David Miscavige's daughter. She's actually his niece, but still very much part of a high profile Scientology family. She was born into the religion in 1984 (make her only a year older than myself) before her uncle took over. Both of her parents were devout followers of L. Ron Hubbard's odd religion and were a part of the Sea Org, which is basically Scientology slave labor that they sign billion year contracts for (no, that is not an exaggeration). 

Jenna was devout herself growing up, despite her less than ideal childhood. Her parents pretty much left on her on a Scientology ranch and she only got to see them a few times a year. The ranch provided a place to stay and food to a handful of kids and they also got some schooling, although most of it was church curriculum. That was probably the most interesting part of the book. As a child, I cannot imagine going through all of the "tests" they had to take. Basically everything is done or repeated over and over and over again until is ingrained into these kid's heads. The repetitiveness is enough to drive most people mad. Then they had the constant auditing sessions where an e-meter was used to clear their thoughts and force them to confess anything they might be witholding. If that last sentence didn't make any sense to you, you'll catch on to the Scientology lingo pretty quickly while reading the book. 

The saddest part was Jenna's reluctance to leave the church even after her parents got out. It was all she had ever known. The brainwashing they do to these kids is absolutely heartbreaking. They tear apart families so that the children are literally more dependent and loyal to the church than to their own family.

This book is engaging and very well written, however, I did read a pretty thorough history of Scientology before this book (Going Clear: Scientology, Hollywood, and the Prison of Belief) and I think it did help with understanding a lot that was going on in the background. This book is pretty exclusively just Jenna's story and doesn't really delve into the inner workings or history of Scientology.  

Bowie by Marc Spitz (CBR-V #27)

Cannonball Read V: Book #27/52
Published: 2009
Pages: 429
Genre: Biography

If you ask anyone who knows me, they'll tell you I'm a huge David Bowie fan. I was browsing my local library and saw this book and just had to pick it up. The only Bowie biography I had previously read was his ex-wife's book about their history together called Backstage Passes. It was a pretty good read with a lot of Bowie's history, but it was (obviously) very biased. 

Marc Spitz's biography is an incredibly detailed story of David Bowie's life all the way from how his parents met up until his quiet life in the late 2000's. Of course Bowie released his first album in a decade just this spring, so he's not quite finished with his career yet, even at 66 years old! Even if you're not a fan, you have do admit the man has had quite the career, almost completely reinventing himself every decade.

David Bowie started out as David Robert Jones in London. Even as a child, he knew he wanted to be a famous rock and roll star. Bowie wasn't one of those "instant stars" who was discovered one day out of the blue. He worked hard for a long time before he finally got recognition with his breakout song in the 1960's, "Space Oddity". Although most people recognize it today it actually wasn't a huge hit at first. Bowie probably wasn't considered a well-known rock star until he invented Ziggy Stardust in the early 70s at the onset of the glam rock movement. 

Of course he famously retired Ziggy after a few years and adopted several other onstage personalities over the rest of the 1970s (Halloween Jack, The Thin White Duke) and hit his biggest commercial success of his career in the 80s with the Let's Dance album. The 90s brought about a more experimental Bowie and he found some success collaborating with Trent Reznor and touring with Nine Inch Nails. People assumed his 2003 album, Reality, would be his last after he had emergency heart surgery and then stayed quiet until just a few months ago. 


This book was so in depth that it's probably not for anyone but Bowie fans. It's not what I'd call "light reading". However, if you're a fan this is a great biography (although I'd also recommend Angie Bowie's book for her interesting inside perspective). 

Beyond the Deep by William Stone & Barbara am Ende (CBR-V #25)

Cannonball Read V: Book #25/52
Published: 2003
Pages: 352
Genre: Memoir/Nonfiction

Apparently I'm on a cave kick right now (after recently reading The Deep Zone and Blind Descent) but I think I'm starting to get burnt out. Beyond the Deep is written by Bill Stone, who was one of the men featured in Blind Descent. His journey through the Huautla cave in Mexico was a large part of Blind Descent, but this is a much more in depth account of that journey.

Bill and his then-girlfriend, Barbara, are leading a team to try and extend the depth of Huautla. Bill believes that it has the potential to be the world's deepest cave after some non-toxic dye was placed in the river at the mouth of the cave and it exited in a river miles away - he just has to find a way through. However, Bill isn't the best leader. He's gruff and focused more on the goal than the people who are helping him get there. He seems to be more suited to solo caving expeditions, but he really can't do one of this caliber without a lot of help. After the death of a well-liked team member, most of the crew is hesitant to continue, so he and Barbara end up doing the last leg of the descent alone. 

This book is VERY in depth. It's full of caving lingo (there's a glossary in the back to help) and so detailed that you have to read slowly to really picture what's going on. I think in this case Blind Descent was better because it was more condensed. Four hundred pages of rocks and cliffs and ropes gets repetitive after a while and it gets a little hard to follow all of the sumps and passages even with the handy maps that are included in the book. 

I also wanted a little more character development. Blind Descent took the time to really flesh out the two men it followed. I actually think I learned more about Bill Stone from that book than the one he actually authored. Beyond the Deep was almost strictly action oriented and I had a hard time telling a lot of the cavers apart. When one of the crew dies, I knew that he was well-liked the rest of the crew but I didn't feel like the author showed the reader that.


It's an incredible story though. I may just be burnt out from reading so many caving books recently. 

Heads in Beds by Jacob Tomsky (CBR-V #24)

Cannonball Read V: Book #24/52
Published: 2012
Pages: 256
Genre: Memoir

I love reading memoirs from people who work in seemingly mundane customer service jobs such as waiting tables, working on a cruise ship or, in this case, working the front desk of a hotel. I've worked several customer service jobs myself and it seems that no matter what type of CS job you may have, the customers are all pretty much the same. 

Jacob Tomsky (although he goes by "Tom" for most of the book) started out as a valet worker when a new high class hotel opened in New Orleans. He quickly moved up the ranks to the front desk and then to a housekeeping management job before he moved to New York. He tried to change careers, but his degree in philosophy wasn't really getting him anywhere so he started working the front desk of a five star hotel in New York City. 

This book was great. I laughed when Tom described his cokehead managers who stole from the minibars and passed out in empty rooms. I cringed when he talked about bad tippers and rude customers (as a former waitress, those rang a little too close to home). He also gave tips on how to NOT be one of those terrible hotel guests (hint: a $20 bill gets you just about anything). 

On top of the entertaining stories, Tomsky is actually a good writer and very humorous. This book had the potential to be a very dry selection of stories about weird hotel guests, but the author really put some life into it and it made all the difference. 

Banished: Surviving My Years in the Westboro Baptist Church by Lauren Drain with Lisa Pulitzer (CBR-V #23)

Cannonball Read V: Book #23/52
Published: 2013
Pages: 304
Genre: Memoir


The Westboro Baptist Church has made headlines for the past several years doing really sick things in the name of their religion. They're based out of Kansas and fly all over the United States to picket funerals (they specialize in soldier's funerals and the funerals of those who have died due to hate crimes) and spew their disgusting ideas in the name of "free speech". 

Lauren Drain led a fairly normal life in Florida until her dad decided to make a documentary about the Westboro Baptist Church, who had come into the spotlight after picketing Matthew Shepard's funeral with vulgar signs such as "God Hates Fags" and "Matthew Shepard is in Hell". Lauren's father was an atheist until the church somehow pulled him over to their side and he moved his entire family to Kansas when Lauren was a teenager. I'm still not sure how they persuaded an atheist to join their cult, but Lauren seems to describe the appeal of the church being that they "make sense" with their interpretation of the Bible and they give rational answers to any questions an outsider may have. 

What I found kind of interesting about the WBC is that they believe that God preordains who is going to heaven (which happens to be only the members of their church). They aren't trying to gain followers because in their minds everyone else is going to hell no matter what. They simply believe that God wants them to INFORM the masses of being doomed to hell. I'm not sure why it matters if they're informed or not considering they believe there is no chance to change that fact. 

As for the church itself, it's very small and consists of mostly Pastor Phelp's family members. According to Lauren, there were only about 60 members in the entire church and her family were considered outsiders because they were one of the few that weren't direct family members of the pastor. Because of that, the Drain's constantly had to try and prove themselves to the church. With Lauren being the oldest child in her family (she has three younger siblings - two are much younger due to the WBC ban on birth control) she is supposed to be a reflection of her family's morals and ethics. As most teenagers do, Lauren rebelled - although that term is used loosely here - by being "preoccupied with boys". However, for someone who didn't grow up in the cult, Lauren is an eager picketer who seemingly thrives off the church's messages of hate.

While the book was a very interesting view into the Westboro Baptist Church, it was a little disappointing. Lauren didn't leave the church of her own free will (she was banished after it was discovered that she had talked to a boy online) and you can tell she very much would still be a part of the church if she hasn't been forcefully removed. She did apologize in the epilogue for some of the things she did, but the rest of the book really didn't show any remorse. For someone who didn't enter the church until their mid-teens, it was really frightening how easily she slid right into the horrors of the Westboro Baptist Church.

Blind Descent by James M. Tabor (CBR-V #22)

Cannonball Read V: Book #22/52
Published: 2010
Pages: 286
Genre: Nonfiction


I decided to pick up this book after reading and enjoying James Tabor's first try at adventure fiction with The Deep Zone. Blind Descent is a non-fiction book that follows two main cave explorers as they try and find the deepest cave on earth. 

Bill Stone is convinced that the Cheve cave in Mexico will win the title of the deepest cave if he can overcome some pretty major obstacles and explore a little deeper. This isn't an easy task either - Stone literally spent decades and hundreds of thousands of dollars on trying to prove that his theory about Cheve was correct. When he wasn't exploring the cave, he was trying to invent a new type of rebreather to be used for deep cave exploration. Rebreathers are sort of like scuba tanks, but much more efficient because they recirculate the air allowing for hours of underwater time. 

On the other side of the world, Alexander Klimchouk has been leading teams into a freezing cold pit in the Republic of Georgia called Krubera. He believes that he can prove Krubera is the deepest cave on earth. 

Klimchouk and Stone are very different men.This kept the story from becoming too repetitive and I liked seeing the contrasts between the two. Stone is tall and muscular who is hard to get to know on a personal level. Klimchouk is a more slight man who is more friendly and easy going. Like the men, the two caves are also very different. Cheve is in southern Mexico, so it's not too cold underground. It's also a more open cave with larger passages. Krubera is filled with freezing water and tight spaces. 

Both caves have the usual dangers - tight passageways that are barely larger than a human, deadly falling rocks, dangerous rappels, large bodies of water to cross underneath (called "sumps" in cave lingo), literal absolute darkness, not to mention the danger of just being injured so far away from the surface. A single mistake can be deadly.

Caves are fascinating and this book was just as thrilling as Tabor's fiction cave adventure. He's a talented writer and the fact that he's a caver himself really shows. 

Going Clear: Scientology, Hollywood, & the Prison of Belief by Lawrence Wright (CBR-V #21)

Cannonball Read V: Book #21/52
Published: 2013
Pages: 430
Genre: Nonfiction

Besides the random Xenu and/or Tom Cruise joke here and there, I didn't really know that much about Scientology before reading this book. I knew science fiction writer L. Ron Hubbard was somewhere involved, but that was it. This book is a really solid history of the religion as well as the man who invented it. 

L. Ron Hubbard was a bizarre man who created an equally bizarre "religion" (it's been under fire many times for not actually being a religion as they do not   have a deity or any sort of worship or prayer like most religions). This book follows Scientology from Hubbard's beginnings, through the impact it had on Hollywood stars (most famously being John Travolta and Tom Cruise), and through the current leadership under David Miscavige. 

This book was chock full of information. If you've ever wanted to know anything about Scientology, this should be the first book you pick up. It's very thorough and reminded me of what Under the Banner of Heaven was to Mormonism. And trust me, Scientology is every bit as weird as you've been led to believe. Not only that, the alleged secrecy and blackmail by the church is almost unbelievable. For such a small group of people, they really do have a lot of power. 

The book includes tons of footnotes that pretty much just say how the Church of Scientology denied almost everything it's been accused of, no matter what proof they have or how many people witnessed it. The whole thing was just fascinating to read. The whole thing is so bizarre it doesn't even seem real.

Auschwitz: A Doctor's Eyewitness Account by Dr. Miklos Nyiszli (CBR-IV #52)

Cannonball Read IV: Book #52/52
Published: 1946
Pages: 222
Genre: Nonfiction

Dr. Nyiszli was a Jewish doctor who was picked to assist Dr. Mengele in the Auschwitz death camp during WWII. This wasn't an easy book to read, as with any Holocaust book. It still astounds me that something so awful happened a mere 70 years ago. 

I actually liked the fact that Dr. Nyiszli focused more on the day-to-day activities in the camp rather than the grisly experiments that Dr. Mengele has become known for. The experiments are mentioned a few times, but Dr. Nyiszli mostly performed autopsies for Dr. Mengele and didn't actually assist with any experimentation. 

Again, not an easy read, but a good look at Auschwitz from a slightly different perspective. 

Call Me Tuesday by Leigh Byrne (CBR-IV #50)

Cannonball Read IV: Book #50/52
Published: 2012
Pages: 328
Genre: Nonfiction

This book is supposedly a "fictionalized account of a true story", but is listed on Goodreads as nonfiction so I'm not sure EXACTLY what that means, but nonetheless, it's a compelling novel about child abuse. Tuesday (named after actress Tuesday Weld) endures horrific physical and psychological abuse at the hands of her mother after the death of her older sister. Her sister had polio and died after complications from the Hong Kong flu. 

Soon after her sister's death, Tuesday's mother receives a brain injury after a fall down the stairs. She's never the same after that and blames Tuesday for killing her other daughter. Tuesday has a few younger brothers who are treated normally, so she just assumes that her mother hates her. She is always being "punished", but never knows what she did to be in trouble. The physical abuse is horrific, but the mental abuse is awful as well. She is forced to stand facing the wall in the hallway whenever she is home. She is usually not fed dinner and if she is, her mother makes these disgusting concoctions to make her eat. She is not allowed to bathe and has to wear old, too small clothes to school so she gets made fun of. 

The most disgusting thing? Tuesday tells her friend in Jr. High and ends up running away. Social services makes a house call and completely believes her parents when they say everything is okay. No follow-up calls, just a few months with a counselor who apparently doesn't do any good. Her father is a spineless coward to tries to sneak Tuesday food and sends her to his mother's house every summer to get away, but ultimately he defends his wife. 

I did like the closure at the end with Tuesday's mom and dad, but I would have liked to see what her adult brothers thought of the abuse she endured as a child. They were treated normally while their sister was abused. Did they never try and intervene? Were they scared? Did they think it was normal because they were younger and grew up like that? 

This book was horrible and hard to read at times, but very interesting. I just wish I knew how much was actually based on the true story. I'd be pretty disappointed to find out that a bunch of things were sensationalized for the sake of a good story.

Waiting: The True Confessions of a Waitress by Debra Ginsberg (CBR-IV #43)

Cannonball Read IV: Book #43/52
Published: 2000
Pages: 298
Genre: Nonfiction/Memoir 

I was a waitress in college and I LOVED it. It's such a hard job, but so satisfying to walk away every night with a wad of cash. I've always thought the world would be a little bit of a better place if every person had to spend six months of their life as a waiter or waitress. You literally learn to deal with every type of person whether as a customer or as a co-worker. 

I picked up this book at a used bookstore and was hoping it was better than the behind-the-scenes book I read last year about the cruise ship waiter. It was okay, but focused more on the writer's personal life than his actual job. Waiting was the waitressing memoir I'd been looking for. 

Debra has basically been a waitress at various places her entire life. She has a college degree, but chooses to be a waitress instead. That may seem strange to some, but I can understand her. I have a college degree, but I have thought about going back to waitressing sometimes. There really is no other job like it. This book follows Debra's various waitressing jobs starting when she was a teenager. I loved her writing - she's funny and never goes off on unrelated tangents for too long like some memoirs. She shares stores about customers as well as co-workers and what goes on behind the scenes. It's a very well-rounded view of working in a restaurant. 

Highly recommended if you have ever worked in the restaurant industry. If you haven't -- well, read at your own risk. Sometimes it's best not to know what goes on after hours or back in the kitchen. 

Methland by Nick Reding (CBR-IV #39)

Cannonball Read IV: Book #39/52
Published: 2009
Pages: 272
Genre: Nonfiction

I grew up in a super small town out in the country where currently a meth lab is busted approximately every few weeks. It's sad. I knew people who did meth and I knew people who sold meth. According to this book, when I was in high school was the beginning of the meth epidemic across small town America. It seems to have gotten much worse since I left my hometown eight years ago.

Methland follows the meth problem in the small town of Oelwein, Iowa. Reding paints a bleak picture of this town during the downturn in the economy: drug use is on the rise and employment opportunities continue to diminish. The town is literally on the verge of collapse.

I was hoping to get a background of the drug from this book and I thought the book did a good job of explaining how meth became such a drug of choice for the working class American. I always wondered why it seemed to be much more of a problem in smaller towns rather than large cities. It's actually pretty simple: Anyone can make meth. Literally. Apparently you can make it on your bicycle. You can have a meth lab in a car, a basement, or a hotel bathroom -- even a Walmart (not kidding. I read this in the news a while back. Some lady was cooking meth on a Walmart shelf).

However, the rest of the book falls short. It was actually a little boring in some places as the author gives way too many pages to characters that don't really need it. Such as the local town doctor. I understand that a small town doctor probably has some good insight on the town drug problem, but does he really need 50 pages talking about his family and personal demons? I didn't exactly pick up this book to read about an alcoholic small-town doctor and his issues.

It's a pretty short book, so if you're interested in the history of meth it might be worth a read. Just skim through the more boring parts.

Sloppy Seconds: The Tucker Max Leftovers by Tucker Max (CBR-IV #21)

Cannonball Read IV: Book #21/52
Published: 2012
Pages: 288
Genre: Nonfiction/Humor


I read the first two Tucker Max books back in college. For some reason, they were definitely more funny back then. Anyways, his stories are still pretty entertaining, but the older I get the more irritated I get by his immature antics that occasionally go beyond the realm of funny and venture into just plain cruel. 


This book was released as a free ebook, sort of as a companion book to his third release, Hilarity Ensues (which I will probably end up reading as much as I may resist...). The first few stories are just repeats straight from each of his three books. At first this kind of irritated me because I thought the entire book was just sections from his other books not "leftovers" like the title suggests. But after that there are some leftover stories as well as some stories that Max says he is always asked about. 

If you aren't easily offended, then this free book is a pretty good way to see if Tucker Max stories are for you. He is pretty funny and if nothing else he's pretty honest about how much of a douche he is/was.