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The novel forming in my brain 'lo these many years is complete ..read more

White Holes - Carlo Rovelli (2023) I have admired so many great thinkers, imagining how it must have been for contemporary readers of Goethe, Homer, Nietzsche, etc.  To share in the intimate thoughts of those at the cutting edge of abstract human exploration (Literature, Philosophy, Science, Arts) as they themselves first share them with the world at large seems to me one of the rarest glories that life may afford for a layperson such as myself, in love with science and human exploration.  Reading the work of Carlo Rovelli I find myself exactly where I imagined decades ago, with ..read more

  Sonic Life: a Memoir - Thurston Moore (2023) I am a Sonic Lifer. In my heart, I truly came into my own when I first heard the sound of Sonic Youth's "Daydream Nation" at age 16.  I had finally discovered an aural equivalent to the skronk in my own head.  There was no turning back.  While Sonic Youth was not the first band I rocked to, or first loved, or first thought of as "my fave," they were the band that crystallized me.  Because of this I hold them, their music, and the individual members in very high regard.   When the inevitable happened, and Sonic ..read more

  The Book of Genesis Illustrated – R. Crumb (2010)               I was gifted this amazing book by my brother.  As a life-long fan of Robert Crumb and the big-butt, thick-legged femeninas he obsessively drew and lusted over, I wondered how his obsessive drawing style would lend itself to the stories contained within the Bible’s Book of Genesis.  As with any genius artist, the results are more enjoyable than the actual source material.             The Book of Gene ..read more

  You Can’t Win – Jack Black (1926)               Books are magic.  Every time I enjoy a new one I am reminded of this fact.  Before humans assigned symbols to the sounds made as they spoke, all knowledge and information was dispersed orally.  For you to learn how to braid rope, for example, you had to live near someone who knew how to braid rope, and have them teach you the technique through spoken words and physical demonstrations.  This allowed knowledge and wisdom to pass along familial and then tribal l ..read more

  The Encyclopedia of Magic & Conjuring – Walter Gibson (1976)               It was during a quick visit to the local used bookstore that this wonderful book jumped out at me.  I have always loved stage magic, although I am more of a fan and audience member that a practicing magician.  Magic, like all difficult endeavors, requires a patience I do not possess.  I knew the author of this book, Mr. Walter Gibson, from my previous reading.  To me, he will always be the creator of the most-awesome pulp hero Th ..read more

  The Prince – Nicolo Machiavelli (1532)             Where can I begin? It is hard to say when it comes to the  diplomat, politician and writer Nicolo Machiavelli.  For one, he lived at a time of great tumult in the peninsula we now refer to as Italy.  City-states would war against each other.  Princes from foreign countries would take turns assisting and then attacking various fiefdoms and principalities.  Naples hated Florence.  Pisa hated Naples. The Tuscans hated Pisa.  It was endless.  N ..read more

  The Known Unknowns: The Unsolved Mysteries of the Cosmos – Lawrence M. Krauss (2023)               If I could define myself with just one word, it would be “reader.”  Everything in my life either stems from, or draws from, the many books I have read in my 49+ years on this planet Earth.  My biggest heroes, Kurt Vonnegut, Robert Anton Wilson, Richard P. Feynman, etc., came into my life through the written page.  When I began RXTT’s Book Journey almost ten years ago, I dreamed of the possibility that book publish ..read more

  Beautiful Evidence – Edward Tufte (2006)             Sometimes the book lords look down upon us lowly humans and grace us with tomes we would otherwise not read or know about.  Such was the day I found this amazing work by professor, author, and sculptor, Edward Tufte.  As one of my co-workers cleaned out her office, she stacked a bunch of books aside for anyone who wanted them.  I grabbed three that caught my eye, and immediately began devouring Edward Tufte’s masterpiece.         ..read more