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I made it through three books in March. Doesn't sound like much but two of them were quite lengthy.

I started out with #22 in the Tom Clancy Jack Ryan series True Faith and Allegiance. Written by Mark Greaney. At over 700 pages it took a while to get through but it was in the true Clancy still and elicited a 5 star rating.

Next up was one of the most entertaining and informative books I've read in some time. Richard Ben Cramer's What It takes: The Way to the Whitehouse is a comprehensive, in-depth look at the 1988 American election. His sweeping study covers contenders George Bush, Robert Dole, Michael Dukakis, Gary Hart, Joe Biden and Dick Gephardt, among others. Referred to as a cross between Tom Wolfe and Hunter S. Thompson, Cramer's research here is exhaustive. At over 1000 pages if you'e a political junkie like I am you want this on your bookshelf. Another 5 star rating.

I closed out the month with Dennis Lehane's 5th in the Kenzie and Gennaro private detective series Prayers for Rain. I like this series and I'm a big Lehane fan and thought I'd read all six but realized this month I'd skipped over this one. 4 stars for this enjoyable detective novel.

With these 3 books my yearly total has risen to 14 books. I've gotta start reading shorter books.

Part of the reason for only a few books this week was due to the time I spent watching certain series on TV. Billions, Designated Survivor, Madam Secretary, Big Little Lies and the binge sessions involving Grace and Frankie, Black Mirror and Broadchurch are some of the time-killers I engaged in.
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My Back Pages - November

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