I’ve been a fan Marvin H. Albert’s work for decades. Albert wrote westerns, suspense fiction, movie novelizations, and mysteries with plenty of panache. The Reformed Gun was published as an paperback original by Gold Medal in 1950. Concho Reynolds takes a bullet during a botched bank robbery in Texas. His partner is killed by the Texas Rangers who start hunting him. Concho heads for Mexico, but his wound worsens. Concho is near death when he’s rescued by a rancher named Grant. Grant and his former partner, Cooley, have had a falling out. Now Cooley wants to kill Grant. Concho has to choose which side to be on and accept the consequences while Concho’s past rushes up to meet him. I found The Reformed Gun enjoyable. Good action, entertaining characters, and an unpredictable plot. A typically fine novel by Marvin H. Albert.

I’ve always liked Huey Lewis & The News. This 30th Anniversary CD of Sports is totally remastered and sounds great! This is not a “Greatest Hits” CD although Sports includes some of this group’s biggest hits. Back in 1983, Sports sold 10 million copies! The whole business model for pop music has changed now. It’s rare when a CD sells that many copies now with iTunes changing listening habits. But if you’re a fan of Eighties music, Sports will feed your nostalgia. Check out Hyey and Gwyneth singing “Cruisin'” below.
TRACK LIST:
Disc 1
1 The Heart of Rock & Roll (5:01)
2 Heart and Soul (4:10)
3 Bad Is Bad (3:46)
4 I Want a New Drug (4:46)
5 Walking On A Thin Line (5:08)
6 Finally Found a Home (3:42)
7 If This Is It (3:46)
8 You Crack Me Up (3:39)
9 Honky Tonk Blues (3:16)
10 The Heart of Rock & Roll (5:12)
11 Walking on a Thin Line (5:3912 If This Is It (4:25)
13 Heart And Soul (4:25)
14 I Want A New Drug (5:27)

Our local newspaper solicited suggestions for Summer Reading and one of the contributors mentioned that Mukoma Wa Ngugi’s Nairobi Heat starts in Madison, Wisconsin. Since I spent many pleasant years in Madison, I was immediately attracted to this thriller. The book opens with the murder of a white teenager at the doorstep of an African activist who teaches courses in Genocide at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. The narrator is an African-American detective employed by the Madison Police Department. The investigation leads the detective to Nairobi and a chaotic search for clues in Africa. The body count mounts up. If you’re in the mood for an unusual thriller (with echoes of Le Carre’s The Constant Gardener) give Nairobi Heat a try. It’s a quick read. GRADE: C+

Borgen 2 electrified me even more than BROGEN 1 did. These 10 episodes show the talented Sidse Babett Knudsen as Birgitte Nyborg, the first woman Prime Minister of Denmark, facing political and personal crises. No CGI, no elaborate sets, no spectacular effects. Just a great cast and solid scripts. Borgen 2 builds on the plots from BORGEN 1 so to appreciate the drama, you’ll need to start the series with the first season. If you’re a political junkie like me, dramas like House of Cards and BORGEN are like crack. I highly recommend BORGEN. GRADE: A

Ken Ludwig is a playwright who loves Shakespeare. He started teaching his kids about Shakespeare when they were six years old. Ludwig writes convincingly that Shakespeare can be learned at a young age. His approach is to start with the comedies. How To Teach Your Children Shakespeare includes detailed analysis of many of Shakespeare’s plays including one of my favorites: Twelfth Night. Ludwig’s other technique for teaching kids Shakespeare is to have them memorize some famous Shakespeare passages. You don’t have to have kids to appreciate Ludwig’s book. Trust me, you’ll come away with new insights into Shakespeare’s plays if you read Ludwig’s fine book. After finishing How To Teach Your Children Shakespeare, I wanted to drop everything and read some Shakespeare!
TABLE OF CONTENTS:
Twelfth Night
Romeo and juliet
Interlude
Henry lV Part l
As You Like
Henry V
Interlude
The Tempest
A List of Favorite Epigrams
Bibliography

Dr. Barnard’s useful book focuses on three factors that affect memory: toxic metals in our diets, foods that protect the brain, and activities that protect the brain. Using the latest research, Barnard’s approach shows how minor adjustments can lead to big chances in memory and cognition. Other factors like genetics, the importance of fats, and the key vitamins that can protect us from dementia and Alzheimer’s are explored. If you’re as concerned about the aging brain as I am, I highly recommend Power Foods for the Brain.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Chapter 1: Sharpen Your Memory, Enhance Your Brain
Chapter 2: Foods That Shield Your Brain From Toxic Medals
Chapter 3: Foods That Protect Your From Harmful Fats & Cholesterol
Chapter 4: Foods That Build Your Vitamin Shield
Chapter 5: Mental Exercises That Build Your Cognitive Reserve
Chapter 6: Physical Exercises That Protect Your Brain
Chapter 7: Build Memory Power as You Sleep
Chapter 8: Medicines & Health Conditions That Affect Memory
Chapter 9: A Brain-Enhancing Menu
Chapter 10: Conquer Food Cravings
Chapter 11: Menus & Recipes

By the time you read this, my daughter Katie and I will be on the road from Boston back to Western NY. Katie has a wedding to attend next week and the Altima was due for service and its yearly NY State Inspection. But Diane and I didn’t like the idea of Katie making the 8-hour drive from Boston alone. So our solution was to fly me to Boston and I’d ride shotgun for part of the trip and drive the final part. Father-daughter bonding time! I’ll be back blogging tomorrow.

TRIP UPDATE Diane dropped me off at the Buffalo Airport at 10 A.M. yesterday. I went through the TSA frisk (a former student did it!) and went to GATE 8. We boarded the JetBlue plane at 11:15 A.M. The plane taxied to take-off. Then the pilot said, “Sorry folks. We’re having trouble with Engine 2. We’ll be going back to the gate.” We sat at the gate for an hour while the mechanics attempted a “quick fix.” The pilot came on again to say, “The quick fix repair didn’t work. We need a new part from Boston. We’re going to have you deplane.” So all 60 passengers left the plane and four hours later, we were back on the plane. Our plane sat at the gate for 45 minutes (I was getting a sinking feeling). The pilot finally said, “Sorry folks, the engine problem isn’t responding to the new part. We’re going to cancel this flight.” So, it was off the plane again. After standing in line for another half hour, I neared the podium where the JetBlue “service reps” were making “adjustments.”

The lady ahead of me in line blasted the service rep: “I’ll be damned if I get on that plane for a third time!” she thundered. “I could have driven to Boston by this time!” When I finally got up to the service rep (it was 6 P.M. by this time), he told me, “All the flights to Boston are full.” “Refund my money,” I said wearily. I called Diane and told her to come and pick me up. What a waste of a day! I’ll be writing a scathing letter to JetBlue. They should have found a way to get their customers to Boston instead of wasting our time and abandoning us! They suck!

FINAL TRIP UPDATE: Katie arrived home safe and sound. By leaving Boston at 6:30 A.M. Katie made great time while the traffic was light. She ran into some rain around Rochester, but other than that her trip was uneventful. Diane and I are breathing a sigh of relief! Thanks to all of you who sympathized with our situation! You can never be too careful.

Todd Mason enticed me to buy Benchmarks: Galaxy Bookshelf (1985) and Benchmarks Continued: F&SF “Books” Columns 1975-1982 (2013). I read these science fiction book review columns when they were originally published. Algis Budrys’ reviews always inform and entertain. Rereading Budrys’ reaction to Harlan Ellison’s Dangerous Visions (1968) or Poul Anderson’s Flannery of Terra (1966) reveal canny assessments. The new edition of Budrys’ F&SF reviews continues to explore the key SF novels of those years. Hopefully, more volumes of Budrys’ reviews will be published (two more volumes are planned). I consider John Clute to be the best SF critic followed closely by Barry N. Malzberg. But Algis Budrys’ reviews deserve to be read by those who care about science fiction.

Daniel Dennett’s Intuition Pumps and Other Tools for Thinking grew out of a course Dennett taught at Tufts University. The tools for thinking Dennett describes help people solve problems and avoid making logical mistakes. Dennett builds on findings in neuroscience, linguistics, computer programming, psychology, and artificial intelligence. If you’re looking for a book that helps you think better, check out Intuition Pumps. And I think Daniel Dennett looks a lot like Rick Robinson.

Glenn Frankel’s brilliant book on the making of John Ford’s iconic film, The Searchers, reveals plenty about Ford and the cultural aspects of the Fifties. The Searchers tells the story of a 5-year search for a girl that had been kidnapped by the Comanches. Alan LeMay’s book,The Searchers, based on the true story of Cynthia Ann Parker’s captivity with the Comanches which began in 1836, became one of the best Westerns of the 1950s. LeMay sold the movie rights under the condition he wouldn’t have to write the screenplay for the notoriously difficult John Ford. Frankel’s book tells the story of Cynthia Ann Parker’s 24-year captivity, then how Alan LeMay came to write his book based on Parker’s story, and finishes with a detailed story of how The Searchers was made. Incredibly, The Searchers received NO Oscars in 1956! Anyone who’s interested in classic Westerns and movies should read this book. GRADE: A