BMTG Daily Dose

Formerly known as the Daily Dose, the Weekly Dose is home to weekly excerpts from a wide variety of important books. These excerpts are near and dear to the hearts of the BMTG membership. Submissions from BMTG members are welcome, as long as the guidelines are followed. Submissions that do not conform to the official guidelines will be rejected without the opportunity to appeal. Excerpts are best when read aloud with a dramatic flair.

2006
May | April | March | February | January

2/28/05: Einstein, The Life and Times by Ronald W. Clark

While thus settling his personal affairs, Einstein was also being swept up by the rising tide of Zionism. Here it is only necessary to note that during his Berlin visits of the spring and summer of 1919 he was approached by the Zionists and won over to their cause. They were gratified. But as they saw it, their “catch” was merely that of a prominent Jewish scientist. Before the year was out their minnow was to grow into a whale.

2/27/05: The Godfather by Mario Puzo

“My wife was weeping before she fell asleep,” Don Corleone said. “Outside my window I saw my caporegimes coming to the house and it is midnight. So, Consigliori of mine, I think you should tell your Don what everyone knows.”

2/26/05: The Californios by Louis L’Amour

       Eileen looked at him. “Win, you’re the best nephew a woman ever had … but you’re not Irish.”
       “What has that got to do with it?” Standish asked, a bit irritated.
       “Possibly nothing,” she agreed, smiling, “but the Irish are an ancient people, and they do not deny another world.”

2/25/05: The Hunchback of Notre Dame by Victor Hugo

       But all this suave hypocrisy had not its accustomed effect on the severe elder brother. Cerberus would not bite into the honey cake. The archdeacon’s brow lost not one of its frowning wrinkles.
       “What is it that you want here?” he said sharply.
       “Well, to come to the point,” answered Jehan, bravely, “I need some money.”

2/24/05: Code to Zero by Ken Follett

       “It’s downtown, right in the Mall, around Tenth Street.”
       He had driven around Washington enough today to know that that was not far away. “What time is the lecture?”
       “It started at three.”
       Luke checked his watch. It was three thirty. If he hurried, he could get there by four.

2/23/05: Injury Time by Beryl Bainbridge

“She’s too vulnerable,” observed Muriel, hovering anxiously about the sofa. “It’s in her face. She’s like a child dressed up for a party. Underneath is a pure heart struggling to come to terms with life. But then, the way the world is, what chance has she got?”

2/22/05: Babi Yar by A. Anatoli (Kuznetsov)

After he had taken us another three or four miles, full of misunderstandings, conflicts and insults, the black horse went on strike.

2/21/05: The Honored Society by Michael Gambino

Immediately, as I stood at the table, Joe Figorelli started the ceremony by asking, in a very formal voice, “Do you know why you are here, Michael?”

2/20/05: Rage by Philip Friedman

“Gentlemen,” he said. There was no trace of tiredness in his voice. “As you know, I’m here at Fort Howard as the representative of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. For that reason, I’ve been given special command authority here. I hoped not to have to use that authority, but I’m afraid I no longer have any choice.”

2/19/05: Aztec Blood by Gary Jennings

“I will go now to the place where my ancestors have gone. I am old and tired and it is a long trip.” He slowly faded, his breath leaving him as I held him in my arms and cried.

2/18/05: Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens

“I always give too much to ladies. It’s a weakness of mine, and that’s the way I ruin myself,” said old Joe. “That’s your account. If you asked me for another penny, and made it an open question, I’d repent of being so liberal, and knock off half-a-crown.”

2/17/05: To America by Stephen E. Ambrose

“We want you to do it.”
“I can’t and won’t. I’ve got lots of books I want to write. Nixon isn’t one of them.”
She threw out her net, began to pull it in, and caught me. “Where else,” she asked, “can you find a bigger challenge?”

2/16/05: The Client by John Grisham

“Have you seen him since?”
“No. But I will one day. When I grow up, we’ll catch him somewhere, me and Ricky, and we’ll beat the living hell out of him. Bruise for bruise. Stitch for stitch. We talk about it all the time.”

2/15/05: The Adventures of Jonathan Corncob by Anonymous

       “Oh!” said I, “that alters the case; I beg your pardon, my dear Desire; but pray proceed.”
       “Where did I leave off?” said she.
       “At your friend’s being taken prisoner by a dragoon’s horse.”

2/14/05: The Houseguest by Thomas Berger

Doug continued to remain deaf to her speech. Could she be only imagining she spoke aloud? Of course she had for some years been given to abusing him tacitly in these terms, which strangely enough had seemed much stronger in the unspoken medium.

2/13/05: The Martian Chronicles by Ray Bradbury

They ran. The trees roared over Captain Black’s head; the earth roared under his feet. He saw the golden figure of Edward Black pull ahead of him in the amazing dream of reality. He saw the house rush forward, the screen door swing wide. “Beat you!” cried Edward. “I’m an old man,” panted the captain, “and you’re still young. But then, you always beat me, I remember!”

2/12/05: Moby Dick by Herman Melville

“He smites his chest,” whispered Stubb, “what’s that for? Methinks it rings most vast, but hollow.”

2/11/05: Haunted by Heather Graham

       “You should shave, Carter,” Penny told him.
       “I’ve worked long and hard on this beard!” he told her.
       “You’re still such a handsome fellow without it,” Penny argued.
       “But I don’t look like Jeb Stuart without it!” Carter protested.

2/10/05: Hawaii by James Michener

So Wild Whip stormed back to Hanakai, shook his English expert into reasonable sobriety, and said, “Dr. Schilling, you’ve got to make the pineapples smaller.”

Bonus Reading from Hawaii
At the head of his nervous column marched Tupuna, and whenever he came to a large rock, he begged the god of that rock to let him pass. When he came to a grove of trees he cried, “God of these trees, we come in friendship.”

2/9/05: Closing the Ring by Winston S. Churchill

To General Paget I said, “I congratulate you on the satisfactory outcome of your firm and well-devised action.”
The President shared my relief.

2/8/05: Dreamcatcher by Stephen King

Mr. Gray held the menu, looking at the lists of stuff – meatloaf, sliced beets, roast chicken, chocolate silk pie – with interest and an almost total lack of understanding. Jonesy realized it wasn’t just not knowing how food tasted; Mr. Gray didn’t know what taste was. How could he? When you cut to the chase, he was nothing but a mushroom with a high IQ.

2/7/05: The Horse Whisperer by Nicholas Evans

The light above the mirror made his sunburnt face look green against the shaving foam. The bathroom was dingy and cramped and Tom had to stoop to stand under the shower rigged in the bathtub. It always seemed motels like this were built for some miniature race you never came across, people with tiny, nimble fingers who actually preferred soap the size of credit cards and wrapped for their convenience.

2/6/05: Watching Baseball by Jerry Remy

It would be nice to think that everybody remembers the baseball season is 162 games long, that an everyday player is going to get 500 at bats, and that athletes can take failure in stride. But for most players, it’s not that way; it’s life and death with every at bat.

2/5/05: The Island by Peter Benchley

       It was a slab of fish, raw, salted, and dried, but still slimy.
       “You don’t cook food?”
       “You’re mad. You think I want to lose my tongue?”

2/4/05: The Last Time I Saw Archie by Rodney Carlisle

“You’ll get Oglemeyer’s firing squad for sure,” Russ grunted. “And I’d join it. If there’s one thing you can’t fake it’s a glockenspiel solo.”