If you are a shooter, Stephen Hunter should not need an introduction. He is one of the few writers out there that knows guns and its applications plus he is a hell of a story teller. His Bob Lee Swagger series are well know and even one made into a movie (Shooter) but I confess I have a soft spot for Bob’s father Earl Swagger. He is old school, righteous and inflexible in his mission. He is mentioned in some of the Bob Lee Swagger books, but the ones were he is the main character are a world appart.

My favorite is Pale Horse Coming. The book is perhaps the one of the best portrayals of darkest and worst examples of the human souls unchecked. The first half of the book is Earl’s travels to Hell on Earth, almost abandoning all hope and so well described your own mood will become as miserable and hopeless as Earl’s itself. The second part is all Fire and Brimstone as only can be achieved when justice is served magma hot and shoved down the throats of evil men. It is St. Michael descending into Hell to whip Satan’s ass with a crew of like minded archangels. And what archangels! No spoilers here if you haven’t read the book, but even with the names disguised by Mr. Hunter, you will know who they are and agree that you would not mind going to a righteous war besides these men.

“I am giving you a night in Dodge City, where I bet in your heart of hearts you’ve always wished to be.”

Dodge City was a nunnery compared to what’s coming in that book.

Finally my book cue landed on this compendium of very logical and very good tips and advices by Massad Ayoob. This book may sound oriented to the new shooter but in fact it will address issues with all ranges of experience and I doubt that anybody will say “I knew all of that.”

The book is easy to read. Mr. Ayoob  writes as he speaks: as a knowledgeable friend who is giving you firm and wise advice without sounding preachy or overbearing. It has the right amount of anecdote till you realize they are not anecdotes but true “Oh Shit” moments that taught a fundamental lesson and you better absorb that material, apply it and do it fast. Mas goes through every aspect of carrying a concealed weapon, from the gun itself to even to sock selection and how to wear them (ankle holsters anyone?) something I never ever thought about!  Even when he dwells into the Open Carry v. Concealed Carry (a true formula to get emotions boiling among gun owners) he manages to impart the pros and cons of both without putting down either or raising the level of emotions.

Go get yours….

Disclaimer: I had the honor of meeting Mas during a couple of IDPA Matches, but that did not influence at all my review of the book. I am actually scared of Gail and her bayonet-topped Glock though 🙂 You just don’t mess with the PodMistress!

So the latest fun activity for bloggers is the I Write Like super duper writing analysis website that proclaims it will tell you which famous writer you sound (write) like. As with everything in ten interwebs, I am a bit skeptical, but we are also want a bit of ego polishing from time to time. I selected at random a somewhat long post of mine, added it to the magic site and….

I write like
David Foster Wallace

I Write Like by Mémoires, Mac journal software. Analyze your writing!

OK, who the hell is David Foster Wallace? I googled him and I got the pic of somebody that looks quite the hippie and published three books before committing suicide.

So I tried again with a different long post and I got…

I write like
Kurt Vonnegut

I Write Like by Mémoires, Mac journal software. Analyze your writing!

Seriously? Vonnegut?? C’mon! I read Welcome to the Monkey House and Slaughterhouse 5 under duress and only with the aid of spirits which my Father frowned upon because I was an underage student in high school ( I had a weird literature teacher but most of her assignments were fun for book lovers) and I do hope I am not that frigging convoluted… although it may explain my low hit count.

I tried yet another post, medium size and posted under the influence of ire. I got…

I write like
Vladimir Nabokov

I Write Like by Mémoires, Mac journal software. Analyze your writing!

I am not quite sure how should I feel about a writer whose greatest achievement was a novel about a potential child molester. And no, I haven’t read Lolita but I am really not attracted to the theme.

So next I try a mid size paragraph instead of a long post and I am taken to…

I write like
Stephen King

I Write Like by Mémoires, Mac journal software. Analyze your writing!

Is this the Stephen King of The Stand (which I wouldn’t mind since it is his best book) or the Stephen King post PC thinking and Hollywood bucks? I heard an ugly rumor that he is the sinister force behind the Twilight saga and mentor of Anne Rice and the Fabio-Gayish-Vampire genre.

Another random short post is used and now I am….

I write like
James Joyce

I Write Like by Mémoires, Mac journal software. Analyze your writing!

Hmmmm. OK do I detect a pattern here? Ulysses was another of those books that I read because I had to. This time was chasing a girl and trying to do things to impress her. At the end she went and chose a Che T-shirt- patchouli-sandals-fleas&ticks hippie I kid you not. It is not like I don’t like long winded books, I was raised and enjoyed War and Peace and any long winded russian writer from back then plus I still think that charging over $20 for a book with less than 300 pages is a felony, but Ulysses was a drag and it is not my style!

One more chance at redemption! Three paragraphs at random, now or never. Survey says..

I write like
Arthur Conan Doyle

I Write Like by Mémoires, Mac journal software. Analyze your writing!

YES! I am staying here.  Forty plus years later I still enjoy Holmes & Watson’s stories like the first day I laid my hands on a battered and cover-less paperback I got by pennies on this little bookstore somewhere south of the Caribbean. I still have the book, but now it is set aside as a personal relic not to be touched because it may fall apart any second.

The truth, I think this badge is more truthful than all the analysis out coming out to the webiste.

I write like
a jackass with a laptop

I Write Like by Mémoires, Mac journal software. Analyze your writing!

And that’s all I have to say 🙂

So I am giggling right now after getting a letter from a remote location in Utah.  The new M.H.I. patches are now in my possession and once again I find myself wondering what piece of clothing can be deserving of have them attached.  A cap i had with the original M.H.I. patch is in the possession of a buddy of mine who became a rabid fan after I recommended the book for Summer reading (or was it Fall?)

Book wise I am a confessed 100% Luddite, so begrudgingly I have to say that Monster Hunter Vendetta is now in what is know as Electronic Advanced Reader Copy. If you are a fellow retrograde, you can order your advanced paper copy via Amazon and avoid all the electronic boys and girls commenting and giving away spoilers.

Any dissolute that dares post a spoiler in the comment section, shall face my wrath in the form of a visit by a pack Canis HugoChavez: a sadistic animal that is the cross or a Chupacabra with a delusional Warg.

I have a sad confession to make: I am reading Atlas Shrugged for the first time in my life. I started a couple of days ago and it is a slow going but mostly because the font is so damn small. I also found out that one of her other books was turned into a movie which happen to be one of my favorites in the “Nobody liked it but me.” category: The Fountainhead.

I am barely in Part One Section VI but I do know what the book is about. What it strikes me as sadly funny is that I keep finding parallels between the “Socially Conscious”  jackasses in the book attacking the Achievers and the “Right Conscious” jackasses badmouthing the NRA for not thinking about them about DISCLOSE.  The language is sometimes identical and their attitudes are 100% identical. That is some scary shit right there Bubba.

If you are capable and willing to read other stuff other than GOA press release, i would ask you very politely to get your copy of Atlas Shrugged, they have them cheap in EBay. The way I see it, you may open your horizons (that is polite for “removing the crap between wedged your ears”) and maybe help with your outlook on the world (which is polite for saying “Stop Whining and move your ass into action.”)

PS: My God! I have become Rob!

So reading Home on the Range earlier today, I noticed a widget displaying a list of books with their respective covers. It is from a website called Library Thing and since I like books a tad myself, I joined. It has a nice little set up to add the books of your collection…. but I realized it is not fast and flexible enough if you happen to have more books than ammo!
I decided to only add the books I really really really liked and not every darn book I own. Plus about half my books are still warehoused south of the Caribbean and I can’t recall all of them from memory.

I do seem to love to get myself in tight spots. This crap is gonna take forever.

Update: 101 books in… That’s for today. This is gonna take a long frigging time.

I finished Jim Cirillo’s Tales of the Stakeout Squad last night. I was expecting a book full of tales of heroism and deeds of super humans. What I got was a deep class on the reality of a gun fight. Don’t misunderstand me, you do get great stories and a glimpse in the head and spirit of a great man (He is another character I will miss never meeting like the late Col. Cooper) but I was not expecting the eye opening information Jim Cirillo’s stories would provide. His work with the Stake Out Squad is just amazing: The selection of the personnel, the weapons they chose, the selection of the locales, shot placement, ammunition and the care for innocent bystanders is just amazing.  Of course kudos have to go to Paul Kirchner who interviewed and collected hours of Cirillo’s bon mots and accounts.

So get the book, read it, read it again and then read it once more. The experiences of a gunfighter  and certified good guy can only serve us well and we will honor him by learning from him. There is a quote in the book from Cirillo that says: ” In teaching a student how to shoot, that’s where I shine.” He still does through this book and I could not think of a better memorial to his life.