I’d been looking forward to reading this since I (finally) started reading Baldwin last year. When this became available at the library at the start of Black History Month it seemed serendipitous. That, unfortunately, is where the joy and happy coincidences ended. I’ve wanted to read this since I read Between the World and Me a few years ago. The Fire Next Time served as inspiration to Coates, at least in the format of crafting a letter to a child, Baldwin’s nephew and Coates’ son. More specifically, it was the first of two essays contained in the book that inspired Coates, “My Dungeon Shook.” Much like when I read Between the World and Me, I knew that unlike Coates and Baldwin, I am not forced to have these difficult discussions with my children about how the world sees them and it absolutely breaks my heart that nearly 50 years later, nothing of consequence has changed. Coates still had the need to channel Baldwin and fill the void he left because the black experience in America is not markedly different now than it was in 1963.
I feel the same way about Baldwin that I feel about Coates. I dream of being able to write like them. They write in the manner in which I think and I adore them for it. While I listened to this book, I plan to purchase a copy that I can read and re-read and use to take notes. This is a book that demands to be read by everyone and it should be. I would assign it to every school if I could.
Let’s be honest, if you are reading this review then you are probably a big fan of the Dresden Files already. These are books 16 and 17 in the series after all. It had been a while since we last saw Harry and the gang and I was really happy with his return. I first started the Dresden Files back in 2012 or 13 and read books 1-10 in an obscenely short amount of time, like a month. I was deployed and very bored at the time. I came home and Cold Days (#14) came out and then a few years later it was Skin Game (#15). I found it a little tougher to get really into those the same way because my start was so much Dresden all at once. I found the books really repetitive as each book reminded us who all of the characters were but I REALLY like it now. After a few years, five or six I think, I forgot some names and some significance so I really appreciated the re-introductions. That said, I think it was obvious that this was original one book that grew too large and split into two. The division was smooth enough but as a result it was one book of all introductions and build followed by a book of all action and climax. I’m really glad I read them together and back-to-back. 
the first Dresden Files that I listened to as I was not a big audiobook guy when the last one came out. I’d listened to some of the short stories as an audiobook and I liked James Marsters narration in them. After listening to full novels, I REALLY like his narration. He absolutely nails Harry. I found myself staying up late to listen to both books. That is not normally my style but I enjoyed them that much. I walked over three miles between my dining room and kitchen one night as I finished Battle Ground. Part of that was that I finished the chapter wherein we saw the death of a MAJOR character and I needed, no, CRAVED, resolution. As always, I like it when the stakes matter and in books where people can die, important characters should not be immune to death. That said, ugh, this one sucked and probably forced my listening while pacing in the wee small hours.
This book was recommended to me by a good friend at work. Coincidently, I have a different book called Kill Chain on my to-read list as well which made it a little confusing and I had to confirm that this was the one he wanted me to read. My friend and I are both in the Army but these days I work the Army equivalent of a desk job. I am a data analyst for the Army now after nearly a decade on the bomb squad. My friend works for an organization with a dedicated assistance and training mission. He and I have been friends for about ten years and we are very different people but at the same time we are quite close. He reads a lot but nearly everything is military and/or professional development focused so when he recommends a book about work, I listen. It helped in this case that I had interest in the subject matter as well.
This book was recommended to me by cannonballer @andtheIToldYouSos after I read Vacationland last year. It is Hodgman’s most recent book and I might like it even more. I think it is definitely funnier but overall a little less poignant. Vacationland, while funny, had kind of a running theme to it – the idea of sacrificing aspects of self for parenthood and other adulthood realizations. Medallion Status had more of a running joke about airline miles, which was not as emotionally involving but at the same time, I am not doing it any justice here. Yes, the running joke is about airline miles, but it is also about the trivial and mundane and how that drives us to do things and make decisions, sometimes more than the serious stuff. Overall, this book is lighter but also had more actual laugh-out-loud moments. Hodgman’s humor is perfect match for what makes me laugh. I will read every book he writes.
After reading A Promised Land and feeling upbeat, I started The Color of Law because we don’t deserve happiness in 2021. The Color of Law, subtitled A Forgotten History of How Our Government Segregated America, sets out to prove, and I think very effectively, that segregation was and is the result of government policy. More simply, the policies are de jure not de facto. It was not the actions of people or institutions acting with prejudice but instead the laws passed, from the national to the local levels, which encouraged discrimination. 
Like many people, I’m sure, I was very excited to read President Obama’s memoir. As I do almost exclusively now, I listened to it and was delighted to find that he narrates it himself. It was absolutely delightful to listen to him speak for hours. I started my year off with this book as I hope it would set the proper tone for the new year. A whole lot happened while I listened to this book, namely the insurrection at the Capitol, so it was nice to have at least a little solace as the world continued to crumble down around us. I found this book to exceed my every expectation, which was no short order. I expected a great deal from this book and I was still surprised by how good it was. I found President Obama to be very forthright and more willing to discuss some of his mistakes that I assumed he would be. I tend to be very leery of memoirs, especially from really big figures but I must admit that when they include what feels like honest introspection and a willingness to discuss the hard and difficult things with which the dealt, I find myself willing to be a disciple for them. I felt the same way about Colin Powell’s and Bob Gates’ memoirs as well. I don’t like the Horatio Alger type memoirs in which someone overcomes everything thrown at them, never stumbles, and attempts to rewrite history. Especially, if it is history through which I lived. I ABHOR being gaslit and I feel that I have had a lot of practice at it recently. This memoir does not do that. In fact, reading this book at the end of the last administration drew such a clear and obvious contrast that it almost certainly impacted my opinion of it. All of that said, this is still one man’s view of his own life and by extension, his legacy. It is not completely objective but how could it be? I am very excited to read the second volume. There are certain things I would like to see President Obama discuss that would not be fun or happy sections, namely the “red line” in regards to Syria and the expansion of drone warfare. Both of those things revolve around my professional sphere and I’d like to see his honest thoughts about them.