Books I've read: HEAT 2

Caveat: these off the cuff posts are for me and are more book report than analysis. I found that I was reading several dozen books a year, but I was not retaining much. So, these "Books I've Read" posts were a way for me to job my memory and possibly retain more about what I've been reading than has recently been the case. I would certainly prefer, at some point, to transition more into analysis rather than regurgitation mode, but only time will tell if I reach that goal. So, with that, another book I've read...

Heat 2, written by Michael Mann & Meg Gardiner. This book was a complete surprise to me. Sure, I'm a huge fan of Michael Mann's films -- Last of the Mohicans is one of my all-time favorites -- but how would his work translate to the printed page? The answer, with the understanding that he co-wrote this with an award-winning novelist, Meg Gardiner, is wonderfully!
Prior to reading this, I watched Heat again, for the first time in a long time. That. Is a good movie. And the story slides directly from the end of the movie into the start of this book. 

It is 1995, and we follow Chris Shiherlis (Val Kilmer) as he tries to recuperate enough to get out of L.A., with the help of Nate (Jon Voight). Of course, Lt. Vincent Hanna (Al Pacino) is still on the hunt for Chris, the only member of Neil McCauley's (Robert Deniro's) crew to get away, at the end of the movie. So, his recuperation time won't be as long as necessary; Nate needs to get Chris out of the city, and out of the country, fast. And he sends Chris south, to Paraguay. There, Chris hooks up with a Taiwanese crime family, the Liu family, in the city of Ciudad del Este. Chris knows he needs to go along to get along, that Nate has called in a favor to get him in with this family, and he remains lowkey, does his job, and watches -- seeing the daughter of the crime boss, Ana, get the short end of the stick, since her brother, Felix, is in line to take over, even though she's the one with the intelligence, the ambition, and the backbone needed to keep the family moving forward in the high stakes life of international crime. Chris falls for her, of course, even as he pines away for Charlene and their young son, back in the states. 

1988. 
Mann & Gardiner take us back to Chicago, to seven years before Heat, to Neil McCauley and his crew, including Chris and Michael Cheritto (Tom Sizemore), as they rob banks in the greater Chicago area. This is where Lt. Vincent Hanna is stationed, at this time, but his eyes isn't on Neil's crew, he's trailing a vile piece of trash, Otis Wardell (though Hanna doesn't know his name), who likes to do home invasions, when the rich families are home, and rape and beat the members of the family, in some power hungry show of his alpha male, big-balls machismo. 

There's a guy in Chicago, who has an auto repair business, where Neil gets his cars for his jobs: clean, with papers, and average looking. The man does good work, and Neil pays him well and shows him respect. Too bad for him, Otis Wardell also uses this guy for his vehicles, and Wardell doesn't like the idea of another guy getting special treatment from the man he sees as his car guy. A bit on the paranoid side, Wardell starts trying to find out who Neil is, what his jobs are, and how he can get him out of the way. Wardell is an evil mutherf*&#er. And Neil is completely oblivious to his existence. 

Neil and his crew are successful with their latest heist, allowing Chris to return to wooing a Vegas call girl he recently met, Charlene (Ashley Judd), while Neil returns to his girlfriend, Elisa, and her daughter, Gabriela. They have a good life, as good a life as one can have when you're living on the other side of the law. Neil is a caring father figure to Gabriela, a good man to Elisa; they have plans of settling down, properly, eventually. 

Back in 1995, Chris is becoming more comfortable and more familiar with the Liu family business, and he begins to offer some insights into their dealings, which are welcomed by the patriarch, David Liu. As Chris rises in esteem with Mr. Liu and becomes closer to his daughter, Ana, he and Ana start to consider the possibility of her breaking stereotype -- or forcing her father to set aside stereotype -- and ascending to the top rung. But, of course, that isn't going to happen. Ana is a young woman. In Taiwanese culture, she isn't afforded such opportunity. But maybe there's a way to break off from her family and do her own thing, using the dark web. 

Neil stumbles upon what could be a huge payday for him and his crew, the weekly money train for the drug cartels, which is coordinated just over the border in northern Mexico. It will take some planning, but the complacent confidence of the setup spurs him to the belief that it's very doable. And, with Elisa -- who comes from a long line of border smugglers, and who knows many of the camouflaged trails utilized for such subterfuge -- by his side, Neil knows he has an ace in the hole. Of course, Neil needs vehicles to pull this heist off, including one very special one, a longbed trailer for hauling cars, which Otis Wardell happens to spy when he arrives at the auto shop just as Neil is leaving. Even more intrigued now, Wardell decides he wants to find out what this other crew is doing and take them down. 

Meanwhile, Lt. Hanna has managed to discern how Wardell targets his victims, from his investigation of the latest home invasion, and he has a lead on Wardell's next victims. But they need to move fast. Hanna races to the home of the next victims with his guys, Casals and Drucker. They manage to take out some of Wardell's guys, but in the ensuing bloodbath, which leaves Hanna wounded in the leg, Wardell manages to slip away. But now he knows that the police are on to him, and he needs to get out of town. But he needs to know about Neil McCauley's job. So he beats his car guy just to the point of death, to pry away what he can from the guy about McCauley's plan, and then he leaves him hanging to die in his auto repair shop. And Wardell heads south

The heist with the cartel money goes off . . . with some hitches. Two of the evening guards show up early and discover their compatriots either dead or tied up. They try to stop Neil and his crew, but they do manage to get away with the money, after a bloody firefight. But, Wardell has discovered the car hauler he saw in Chicago and brings his own crew to the safehouse at the point when Neil and his crew are out on the heist. Elisa's uncle, and her daughter, are in the house (though Gabriela is hidden in the bedroom). Wardell forces Elisa's uncle to call Elisa, and his code words alert her to the danger. She uses the open comms to divert Wardell's crew and races back, only to find Wardell had remained, just in case something wasn't on the up and up. He has killed her uncle and threatens to do the same to her. Elisa sacrifices herself, convincing Wardell she will take him to Neil, while letting her daughter know that she needs to run as soon as she and this evil man are gone. 

Neil, too, understands what is going on from what Elisa says to him, as she and Wardell leave. He races to the trail she showed him one evening, to set up an ambush for whoever it is that has Elisa, while Chris and the others also race to join them. Neil takes out the rest of the crew in their vehicles, but Wardell, with Elisa in her car, manages to get out and put Elisa between him and Neil, forcing Neil to stand down. That is when Wardell shoots Elisa, fatally wounding her, diverting Neil's attention, and allowing Wardell to escape in the car Neil drove here with, a car filled with 3 million dollars. Chris and the rest of the crew arrive too late. Elisa is dead. They need to get away an lay low. And Gabriela needs to learn to live life without a mother. 

From this experience came Neil's mantra: "Don't let yourself get attached to anything you are not willing to walk out on in thirty seconds flat if you feel the heat around the corner."

The year 2000. 5 years after Neil was shot by Hanna. 12 years after Neil lost Elisa and Hanna lost Wardell. 'And all the chickens come home to roost.'

Chris and Ana are working toward making something for themselves, outside of Ana's family. Except she cannot get out from under their thumb, especially now that her father has joined forces with their rival in Ciudad del Este. But Chris has ideas, and he and Ana go to Los Angeles, so that Nate can put them in touch with Kelso, the computer whiz who always helped Neil with darkweb stuff. 

Meanwhile, Wardell, who moved to L.A. with the 3 million dollars he found in Neil's car, is about to come out from under the rock where he's been hiding, when a waitress at a diner acts oddly around him -- agitated, as if she knows who he is. Which she does, because this waitress is Gabriela, now a college student in L.A. 

And Lt. Hanna is still a part of the Los Angeles police force. And he still has a hard-on for Wardell, the one who got away. 

The way Mann & Gardiner bring all the players back together, five years later, for the final act of this novel is elegant and sublime and does not feel at all forced. It's a testament to their storytelling skills how easily everything fits into place, continuing on from what has come before. And the tension rises as Hanna discovers Wardell is in town and making mistakes, as Gabriela realizes that Wardell is after her, as Chris and Ana try to find a way to get out from under her family's strictures, and as Chris decides, finally, that Charlene is all right in her new life without him and channels the disappointment of that realization into finding and killing Lt. Hanna once and for all, for the death of his best friend, Neil. 

The final chapters of this book are thrilling, as we, the reader, watch from the outside while these people we've come to know so well fumble toward the bloody climax. And the ultimate car chase along the L.A. highway, as Wardell takes Gabriela with Hanna in pursuit, is almost as exhilarating as if Michael Mann had gotten a chance to shoot it on film. This book really is a tour-de-force of crime fiction and a fitting sequel to one of the best crime films ever. 

Definitely watch HEAT again, and once you hit the end credits crack open HEAT 2 and start reading. You will not be disappointed. 

-chris

Books I've Read: HAN SOLO AT STARS' END

 

These past few years, through the Covid pandemic, I've found myself retreating into nostalgia, reading old comic books, playing classic video games, watching comfort movies, and not only has it been a salve for this upended time, but it has also been greatly enjoyable. But there was one experience with which my childhood had been filled that I'd forgotten about: reading trashy sci-fi and fantasy paperbacks. Our family trip to Disney provided a prime opportunity to alleviate that oversight, and it didn't hurt that I'd gone on an online "shopping spree" to find the original Star Wars extended universe books by the likes of L. Neil Smith, Alan Dean Foster, and Brian Daley. 

Han Solo at Stars' End is the first in the Han Solo trilogy (OG style). Written by Daley, who also adapted the original Star Wars films for radio, this book was way more fun than I expected it to be. Daley's prose was light and airy, whisking along at a good clip, while also providing descriptions that felt both familiar and alien at the same time. I'm uncertain when this story is supposed to take place, though I would guess it's prior to Han & Chewie hooking up with Obi-Wan, Luke, and the Rebellion, as we get no mention of anything relating to the first film. A wise decision, as it allows Daley to be untethered from continuity and not have to second-guess any of his writing choices. 

If we don't get any of the other characters we love from Star Wars, we do at least get the familiar in Han Solo and Chewbacca, with characterizations that feel right. Daley also provides a lot of information about the Falcon, commenting at length on the modifications hinted at by Han in that first film, and they all feel plausible and in keeping with what we already know of Han. One of the things I did not expect to get, in reading this book, was new, pertinent information about one of my favorite ships in all of science fiction. More importantly, though, it is these modifications that are vital to the plot of the story. 

While finishing up a job for one scoundrel, Han is informed that, due to new regulations from the Corporate Sector Authority, he will need to have the Millennium Falcon examined and a waiver provided, in order for it to be allowed to fly within Corporate Sector Authority space -- safety precautions and all that, don'tcha know? Han knows he'll never get the waiver, and he and Chewie break the Falcon out of impoundment and fly for a black market technician Han knows, who goes by Doc, in order to get the Falcon tuned along with procuring paperwork that will make it look as if the Falcon has the necessary waiver. After arrival, though, Han & Chewie learn from Doc's daughter, Jessa, that he's been kidnapped, and they have no idea where he is. 

A deal is made. Jessa will provide the paperwork and do repairs on the Falcon if Han will transport two droids to Orron III, within Corporate Authority space, and exfiltrate a small band of individuals from the planet, which also houses one of the Authority's data centers. The droids are going to insinuate themselves into the Authority's data banks and work to find where Doc, and the many others who have been taken, are being held. Han doesn't like the odds, or the idea of returning to a main hub in Authority space, but he has no choice and agrees. 

When Han & Chewie arrive at Orron III, we are introduced to the first black character in Star Wars history, as far as I can tell, as Rekkon greets them. He is the leader of the band of people trying to leave the planet, but he also has the problem of a mole within his group, and he wants Han to assist in finding who that is. They go into the city and the robots infiltrate the system, not only finding the information they need but also discovering that the security police are aware of their presence in the data center. The group, including the other members of Rekkon's cadre, flee, but in the ensuing chase and firefight Chewbacca is taken prisoner. Rekkon stops Han from sacrificing himself in a vain attempt to rescue his friend, an attempt that could only have ended in his death and possibly the wookiee's. 

They clamber into the falcon, still camouflaged within the core of a huge space freighter, and take off, but the Authority has a dreadnaught waiting in orbit, which goes to intercept them. Han releases the grain in the freighter then detaches the Falcon from within its hull and blasts away, letting the freighter fall into the Authority ship, allowing them to escape. But when Han is finally able to leave the cockpit, he finds Rekkon dead. Killed by the traitor, who is still on his ship. But Rekkon left a message, in his own blood, of where the Authority is holding all those they have kidnapped: Stars' End, Mytus VII. 

Han sets a trap with disinformation about what Rekkon discovered and susses out who the traitor is. A fight ensues, but Han eventually gets the upper hand. The traitor, Torm, seeks refuge in one of the Falcon's compartments. But it is an emergency airlock. Han ejects him into the cold of space, then turns his attention to Stars' End and saving Chewie. 

Stars' End is a detention facility, run by an autocratic Vice President named Hirken. Han intercepts a communication from the entertainers' guild about a cancellation by a troupe scheduled to offer their services to Stars' End, but they assured the V.P. that a replacement will be sent along as soon as possible. Han and his new companions use this as a way in and pass themselves off as entertainers. 

Of course, things do not go as smoothly as Han would have hoped (but if things went smoothly, he wouldn't be Han Solo, would he?). The Vice President expected a combat robot to go against his own gladiator-bot. The robots in Han's keeping are not at all outfitted for such an experience, but they go along with it. 

Han manages to get into the main computer area and discovers, or intuits, where the prisoners are being held. Meanwhile, V.P. Hirken becomes irritated at the stalling tactics of Han's companions and demands combat between the droids. It goes surprisingly well for the labor droid Han brought along, but eventually the truth -- as much as necessary -- is revealed and things go from bad to worse. It's exciting and tense, but in the end Han Solo manages to free all of the prisoners, finding Chewie and Doc, while his companions find their loved ones, and they manage to escape in the Falcon after setting the detention center to self-destruct, leaving Vice President Hirken and his entourage to perish on Stars' End. 

I may have said it above, but I was surprised at how much I truly enjoyed reading this. Daley wrote a fun, exciting, tense adventure that allowed me to immerse myself into the world of Star Wars that I love so much. There was no overwriting, no dull points, no out of character moments. I loved it all, along with the opportunity to once again stick my nose into a weathered, yellowing paperback book. What a fun experience! 

-chris 

Books I've Read: WOLF HALL by Hilary Mantel

 

So, I made a plan to write about the books I've read -- part synopsis, part analysis . . . though mostly synopsis -- as a way not only to add to this tired blog, but also for me to remember what I have read. And then, I dropped the ball. 

though, to be fair, I only dropped it for a moment, relatively and metaphorically speaking. but who cares, let's get to it!

WOLF HALL by Hilary Mantel. 

Part one of an historical trilogy, the first two books adapted by BBC Masterpiece, this one winner of the Booker Prize and the National Book Critics Circle Award . . . this book is masterful! Was I ever blown away reading this! It was pure joy. And just because it earned critical accolades was no guarantee I would enjoy it. Art is subjective, and though I loved the adaptation of LONESOME DOVE and that source material won a Pulitzer, I found reading the original novel a slog. But I digress. 

Wolf Hall follows the meteoric rise of a mere blacksmith's son, Thomas Cromwell, as he becomes the closest advisor to King Henry VIII, in early 1500s England. As noted by many, Mantel offers a fictionalized, sympathetic picture of Cromwell. And I don't care in the least. His characterization is all the more engaging for this. Put forth as a quiet, unassuming man, self-taught in various disciplines and multiple languages, who has traveled abroad and returned to England a lawyer, Cromwell utilizes his ability to fade into shadows to watch everyone and everything, as he plans how to rise through society, while keeping the facade of a simple man living only to serve. 

Gaining entry to the inner political workings of England through his loyal service to Cardinal Thomas Wolsey, which also puts him at odds with Thomas More ("Half the world is named Thomas" is one of the lines from Cromwell that brought a smile to my face and has stayed with me since completing the novel), this innocuous man continually confounds those who have lived ever with titles and power and money. Cromwell, in this telling, was born to a blacksmith who was a drunkard and beat young Tom senseless many a time, until Tom left to seek something, anything better. This early abuse steeled the boy who would become the man behind many of the machinations that would endear him to his King, Henry VIII. And even when his patron, Wolsey, finds himself on the wrong side of the king's wrath and eventually dies, Cromwell somehow comes out of this without it hurting him, socially. 

Returning to a thread I lost two paragraphs up (these posts are off-the-cuff, so forgive me if it feels disjointed; there are only 3 of you reading this, anyway, so you can message me if clarification is necessary), it's the quiet strength of Cromwell that I find so intriguing. He rarely raises his voice, hardly ever shows emotion, gliding through the narrative like a shadow, and yet, everything revolves around him. It's a fascinating approach by Mantel. This also makes for a good counterpoint to many of the other characters in Cromwell's orbit -- the boisterous privilege of Henry, the arrogance of Thomas More, the knife-edged ambition of Anne Boleyn, all of them are more animated, more intense, more raucous than Cromwell, and yet, like the running water of the brook erodes the rock, Cromwell's quiet persistence is what allows him to succeed and move into a position of real power. It also offers a wonderful dynamic within the story. 

Mantel's writing -- her actual words on paper -- is masterful. She chooses to never write 'Cromwell said,' choosing to only refer to Cromwell as 'he' whenever defining his speech. It was confusing in the first few pages, but once I got into the rhythm of reading, it all became clear. Mantel also is writing with a slightly elevated language, in order to evince 16th-century England, without wholly abandoning contemporary English. These, combined, make for some slight challenge in reading Wolf Hall (a factor I discovered during a quick online search, where I found some people complaining that the book was too difficult to read and they had set it aside after a few pages), but it also makes for a more enjoyable and satisfying read, as well. Mantel is fully in control of the writing in Wolf Hall, and her confidence is such that she cares not whether you follow or not, she understands those who will get the most from her narrative will complete the journey. It reminds me of the confidence that seeped off the page when I read Toni Morrison's 'Beloved.' It's an admirable trait and elevates the entire experience of reading, for me. There's a reason Wolf Hall won a Booker Prize -- many reasons, actually -- and it is well deserved. I can't wait to dig into the next book!

-chris

Books I've Read: AFTER THE IVORY TOWER FALLS by Will Bunch

 

Haven't been writing lately, which has allowed me more time for reading. But I find, often, that when I look back at the books I've read, though I may heartily recommend a title, I have trouble recollecting anything as to its contents. All that's left is the feeling that it was good or insightful or worthwhile, which isn't nothing, but it's less than I'd like. So, I'm trying something new -- both to possibly kickstart the writing habit . . . again, and maybe to afford my aging brain the opportunity to hold more of what I've read within its gray matter. Thus, the first in what I hope will be a series of posts relating what I've read and what I thought of it. I plan these to be more off the cuff than finely tuned pieces of writing, preferring to "work out on the page" what I thought of the book rather than making this into homework. The ideas offered may come across as half-formed or half-baked, and I apologize if this puts you off, but this is more for me than you--spontaneous, unformed, following whatever thread is sparked in my brain as I'm writing. If you gain something from this, that's great and thanks for reading, if you don't, I am sorry, but what'reyagonnado?

For this inaugural edition we have the latest nonfiction book I've read: AFTER THE IVORY TOWER FALLS, HOW COLLEGE BROKE THE AMERICAN DREAM AND BLEW UP OUR POLITICS--AND HOW TO FIX IT, by Will Bunch. 

Prior to WWII, college in America was a haven for the well-off, the top 5% of our society being afforded the opportunity of postsecondary education, while the rest of the country found themselves relegated to the fields or factories to make ends meet. But, after America helped to defeat Nazism, there was a question of what to do for the returning veterans, and one idea was the G.I. Bill, allowing veterans the opportunity to attend college that hadn't been possible before (with the caveat that this meant white veterans, in the main). Many college presidents felt these working class men would soften the learning at their venerated institutions, but they were proven wrong. 

The American Dream had found another pipeline, as college became a stepping stone for many working class whites to better their status in society, while also engaging their minds and working toward the civic good of all. It was a time when America came to understand education as a public good, something to be aspired to and lauded. In the decades that followed public universities flourished, women were also afforded the chance to seek higher education, and the government assisted, with Pell Grants being a primary tool for allowing those with lesser financial means to afford the cost. But this was a time when tuition was not as exorbitant, in relation to household incomes across the spectrum of fiscal wherewithal. It was a time of great opportunity and aspiration. 

But during the upheaval of the 1960s and 70s things began to turn. Those on the conservative right of American politics (Republicans, say it, Republicans) turned away from the idea of education as a public good. In governors' mansion and state legislatures across the country they slashed funding for public colleges. This drop in funding, along with the privatization of universities, banks, and other financial institutions, meant there was a rise in tuitions for public universities. Pell Grants and other government programs meant to assist people with the cost of college did not keep up, and many times were also slashed or at least became stagnated under Republican fists. 

The cost of college soared out of reach of many, and continues to do so, but these people also held true to the idea that a college diploma was the only way for later generations to improve their status within society. And this improvement is still true, to a point. During recent recessions, the unemployment rates of those without a diploma have often been double that of people who've earned a college degree. But what about the cost behind that degree? Those people are burdened, now, with debt spreading into the tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of dollars, even when they attend state universities, and it is a debt crisis that is untenable. 

With the rising cost of college, the divide between the haves and have-nots has also increased, and this has spilled over into our political ideologies. Republicans, thanks in no small part to hateful rhetoric from talk-show personalities like Rush Limbaugh, believe that college is nothing more than an indoctrination society for politically correct ideas of equality, respect, and representation for minorities. Democrats see this thinking as ill-informed and downright wrong, and they see college as the grand answer to all of society's ills. They're both wrong (though conservatives are more wrong). 

The real problem is, truly, the rising debt spiral for those attending college. It burdens those who choose to follow the traditional path to a better life, while it shuts out so many more who would benefit if given the opportunity, and, maybe even more dastardly, it labels those who do not attend college (a four-year institution, as I've been using the term 'college' throughout) as lacking in merit. Which is completely wrong. Education -- post-secondary education, including not just four-year universities but also trade schools, internships, community colleges, and other, similar programs -- must be seen as a common good, once more. We are failing our young people, at the point when they are most vulnerable: "You're 18 now, better figure out, fast, what you're gonna do with you entire life, and get right to it!" We need to do better. 

Where do the politicians get it wrong? 
As noted above, Republicans feel that colleges have become incubators for indoctrinating their children into 'politically correct' thinking. This is false. 
Democrats focus only on four-year institutions, with their proposals of canceling student debt or making public colleges tuition-free, failing to consider the cohort for whom a four-year degree program is not the answer. 

An idea put forth by Bunch, an idea that has been percolating for decades, is the idea of a mandatory year of service for 18-year-olds. Where the collective battle against Nazism brought us together as a country, maybe it would be a good idea to have something on that scale that could allow all of our young people to have a common touchstone. With the diminishing rolls of people at church or joining civic organizations, there is a need for something to connect us. This solitude that is enveloping our society is helping to foment the divisions we see in our politics. We don't talk to one another any more. We don't meet up at the Lions Club. We don't talk during the tea service after church. We don't bridge the divide that is tearing our country apart. A year of service, where one would be in a collective that consisted of people from across the political spectrum of America might be the first step in healing this wound. And it would give young people an opportunity to earn a living, learn some skills, and consider what they might want to do next, without having to dive into the deep end of the pool where loan sharks and bone-crushing debt awaited them. 

And we need to also, as a country and through the federal government, make education beyond high school a priority once again. We need to fund it, to push it, to make it a reality for everyone. But, that does not mean just four-year universities. We need to broaden our idea of post-secondary education. Include internships, trade schools, and other institutions and programs, as noted earlier in this spiel, so that we provide opportunities that match up with everyone's needs. And, one more time, FUND IT. 

It's an idea.