Reading Diary 1201-1215 2021

Haven't read too many books lately. I'm still working through Cryptonomicon (260 pp in!), which I've come to enjoy the hell out of. Only one new entry here though.

The Arrogance of Power: The Secret World of Richard Nixon (Anthony Summers w/ Robyn Swann) - I've been fascinated by Nixon since I was a child, so I should thank Summers and Swann for disabusing me of the notion he was interesting. The book effectively illustrates what a venal, petty, abusive, and self-sabogating man Nixon was. Yet it feels more like a sordid tabloid than a biography at times; its sources are often sketchy, parts of it feel downright invasive and gross, and the lengthy quoting of Nixon's creepy, misogynistic and clearly aging shrink is almost exploitative. In short, the biography Nixon deserves.