I've been reading The War of the Two Emperors a little every night. The end is near. Napoleon has occupied Moscow and the city has burned. But I stopped at chapter 20. There is a certain tragedy to it; Napoleon's enemies were (with one exception) pitiful in comparison, yet prevailed. 

A History of Islamic Imperialism was interesting, if mis-titled. The imperialist impulses of the Islamic middle east varied only slightly from the imperialist impulses of prior eras. I'm interested in finding a good book on Nasser. He has become one of my favorite figures of the near-modern middle east.

Costochondritis continues. It is frustrating but not more than mildly inconvenient.