As of October 2011, I created an index of books I reviewed here. I will continue to list books I am currently reading here, but I will not attempt to write capsule reviews or even to link to them. For that you should check the index of books I reviewed. Movie Reviews will continue to be listed and annotated as before. See also my 2025 reading list, 2024 reading list, 2023 reading list, 2022 reading list, 2021 reading list, 2020 reading list, my 2019 reading list, 2018 reading list, 2017 reading list, 2016 Reading/Watching List, my 2014 Reading/Watching List, my 2013 Reading/Watching List, 2012 Reading/Watching List, 2011 Reading/Watching List, 2010 Reading/Watching List, 2009 Reading/Watching List, 2008 Reading/Watching List , 2007 Reading/Watching List my previous Sept 2004 to Oct 2005 reading list or my Nov 2005 to Nov 2006 Reading List , so definitely check that out as well. See also my Best of 2006 for a scoop about favorites. See also Writers who have Changed Me and Favorite Childhood Reads. A few remarks. I’m reading several books at a time, and to be honest, sometimes I don’t read all of them depending on the content or my interest. Usually however, it’s been a matter of attention span and what other projects I’ve been doing. Also, you might want to check my favorite novels, and my Amazon.com wishlist. Also here’s an annotated photo of my bookshelf Also, I haven’t read most of these books, but I’ve been setting up Amazon lists of classic Texas novels (100 novels and counting). You also might enjoy reading my Amazon list of Unforgettable Forgettable Novels. and my Film Recommendations for 1st year college students. Also see my Best of 2017 list. I’ve also started adding my book inventory to librarything.com. At the bottom of this page you will find a list of movies I’ve been watching. Here is a lengthy list of my favorite sitcoms (which I update regularly). Also, here’s a series of posts about cultural works which came out in 1965.
Starting in late 2018 I started writing a weekly Robert’s Roundup column of ebook deals. This actually gives you a better idea of what I’ve been reading. In 2021 I started a monthly column called Music Discoveries and a parallel one called Auditory Ruminations (about one artist).
Reading
- Cosmicomics by Italo Calvino.
- Catastrophe and Other Stories by Dino Buzzati
- Memories Before and After the Sound of Music: An Autobiography by Agathe von Trapp.
- American Dirt by Jeanine Cummins
- Art of Creative Writing by Lajos Egri.
- Against Interpretation by Susan Sontag. Rereading. God, I wish this ebook would go on sale!
- Humor/Current events columns by Lynn Ashby (former Houston Post columnist).
- Best of Me by Dave Sedaris. I am really trying to read more humor/comedy to help me write my own.
- I’m Mature when I’m Dead by Dave Barry. Longer extended humor pieces by his usual newspaper columns.
Watching
- One Battle After Another
- Jay Kelly.
- Sinners (half-watched)
- Two German movies about Von Trapp family. Die Trapp-Familie and Die Trapp-Familie in Amerika. Both are lovely! (I wrote about them here).
- Drew Carey show. Rewatching.
- Somewhere in Berlin. Great example of rubble films from post-war Germany. Really good writing and acting, especially of child actors.
- F1. Average race car movie.
- Cat Ballou. Light-hearted Western. Dated but fun
- Alphaville
- Bookish. Extremely mediocre British mystery series.
- Immoral Tales. Directed by Walerian Borowczyk.
- Naked Gun. (Reboot with Liam Neeson). Unexpectedly good.
- Sorry Baby
- A New Leaf with Walter Matthau.
- Pierrot le Fou. unremarkable and pretentious Godard film from 1965. The absurd plot really doesn’t matter; it’s all about attitude and style. Godard has done much better.
- Ballad of Wallis Island, Written by and starring Tom Basden and Tim Key. Surprisingly good movie about a rich man who hires his favorite singer to perform on the island where he lives. Great writing and acting and singing (the star wrote and sang his own music).
- If I had legs, I would kick you.
- Cover UP. Seymour Hersch documentary.
- Nuremberg. Excellent historical drama.
- Hamnet.
- Portobello. Italian series about a talk show host bullied by the mafia. (Didn’t impress me).
- Song Song Blue. Based on the true story of a Neil Diamond impersonator. Update: Saw it twice!
- Scarpetta. Limited murder-detective series based on a book series. Great acting, dull, far-fetched plot.
- Comeback. Parody of Reality/Celebrity TV shows starring Lisa Kudrow. Most interesting thing is that there are gigantic gaps between seasons.
- That They May Face the Rising Sun. Pleasant film adaptation of John McGahern’s 2003 novel about a writer/artist couple who live in a small rural Irish town and must adapt to its slow pace and natural cycles. Has comic moments, but it generally is a reflection on the attractions and challenges of rural living. Filmed in the Galway area, and it is gorgeous to look at.
- Letdown. Wacky Australian pregnancy/mother sitcom.
- Mindfully Murder. German murder-comedy. Brilliant!
- A Simple Plan. 90s film noir about three men who stumble upon a giant sum of money in a crashed airplane. Brilliant acting and script, with lots of unexpected plot twists.
- Ship of Theseus. Beautiful Indian art movie.
- Rocket Science. Movie about high school debate competitions. Written and directed by JHU classmate Jeffrey Blitz.
Podcasts
It occurs to me that I should be keeping track of podcasts I listen to — even though I don’t listen to all the episodes religiously. Actually this is more of a list of podcasts I follow (without actually listening to every episodes. I put asterisks besides shows I make it a point to listen to.
- (From Previous Years): NYT The Daily*, Amicus with Dahlia Lithwick*, Climate Pod*, Book Public, 60 Songs that Explain the 90s/2000s, Rialto Report, The Daily Blast with Greg Sargent, Commonwealth Club Podcast, Where Everybody Knows Your Name with Ted Danson and Woody Harrelson, Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend, Drilled, Fly on the Wall with Dana Carvey and David Spade, Fareed Zakaria GPS.
- Washington Week in Review*. This has been my #1 podcast for years. Friday night top journalists discuss news stories and what they are working on.
- Why is this Good? Podcast by Naples Writers Workshop — they analyze one story per show.
- NotebookLM –> Token Wisdom*. Podcast to discuss the articles on Token Wisdom newsletter written by tech guru Khayyam Wakil. Hard to explain, but it just works. My best guess is that it is AI summaries of technology stories, as told by two different “characters” to provide commentary and explanation (with voices provided by 11labs). Amazing and insightful and episodes are less than 30 minutes.
- Business of Content with Simon Owens. Owens is a great business and technology journalist who talks about content producers.
- I’d Rather be Writing Podcast with Tom Johnson. Tech writing guru who is now into AI.
- Cspan podcasts: After Words and Lectures in History.
- Future Knowledge. Archive.org podcast about copyright, creative commons, open publishing, etc.
- Skiffy and Fanty Show. Sci/Fi podcast
- Middling with Eden and Brock Podcast. Stars of the Middle rewatch reminisce about the iconic Middle sitcom.