Reader’s Diary

Mark Barrowcliffe

Mark Barrowcliffe was a teenage (and pre-teen) nerd who spent far too much of his youth role playing (with dice). This book isn’t about D&D as much as it’s about growing up.  Barrocliffe tells some Ricky Gervais-like cringe-worthy stories about his younger self.  I’m amazed at his willingness to confess to such extreme awkwardness and geekiness. It’s both funny and a little sad.  I enjoyed it, though I admit to missing some of the obscure British pop culture references.

Brad Matsen

Is there a Guinness record for longest subtitle?   How about one for “subtitle that uses another book’s title“?

It annoys me that popular history books and TV shows always have to have some “secret”.   Good narrative history should be sufficient.  The “secret” in this book is that the Titanic may have broken up due to poor design and/or weak steel.   The significance is that, had the ship not broken prematurely, it might have stayed afloat till rescue ships arrived.   Matsen, Chatterton, and Kohler do concede that an iceberg was involved.  A Telegraph article and the video below explain the theory in about as much detail as is contained in the book.

This is an interesting, albeit somewhat superficial, book.