RB Posted November 18, 2012 Report Posted November 18, 2012 (edited) just came from the bookstore with these - most memorable poems - i read 3 poems aloud and having much fun - oh, life is good - 101 physics problems - 50 shades of grey (heard about this one) so I bought the first volume - we will see (update a day later: not impressed), I guess I am not the romantic I once thought, really a waste of my time and I bought the book too. Damm. - paradox by Jim Al-Khalili - chinese Edited November 19, 2012 by RB Quote
RB Posted November 18, 2012 Report Posted November 18, 2012 I'm currently reading two: Collapse (nonfiction) by Jared Diamond and Calico Joe (fiction) by John Grisham I have read all Grisham except calico joe Quote
Mighty AC Posted November 21, 2012 Report Posted November 21, 2012 It's a good read; especially if you like baseball. Quote "Our lives begin to end the day we stay silent about the things that matter." - Martin Luther King Jr"Those who can make you believe absurdities, can make you commit atrocities" - Voltaire
RB Posted November 23, 2012 Report Posted November 23, 2012 (edited) Grisham wrote another baseball novel? I read his novels because of the law interest - gets a bit boring after a while. What I meant is that the story telling is great, but the language is far too simple...I still read them anyway Edited November 23, 2012 by RB Quote
Sleipnir Posted November 27, 2012 Report Posted November 27, 2012 I'm reading the online election results for Victoria. Quote "All you need in this life is ignorance and confidence; then success is sure." - Mark Twain
Mighty AC Posted November 28, 2012 Report Posted November 28, 2012 Has anyone read any of the Dave Robicheaux novels by James Lee Burke? I've only read a couple. I find Burke's dialogue great and his use of descriptive metaphors exceptional. Quote "Our lives begin to end the day we stay silent about the things that matter." - Martin Luther King Jr"Those who can make you believe absurdities, can make you commit atrocities" - Voltaire
Peter F Posted November 28, 2012 Report Posted November 28, 2012 Just finished The Hapsburgs: Embodying Empire by Andrew Wheatcroftt Quote A bayonet is a tool with a worker at both ends
msj Posted November 29, 2012 Author Report Posted November 29, 2012 Just finished The Hapsburgs: Embodying Empire by Andrew Wheatcroftt And? Was it any good? --------------- I have been all over the place: went to Palm Springs at the beginning of the month with Swordspoint on my iPhone and Good Omens on my Kindle. Still haven't finished either on. About half way through both. Started listening to Joseph Anton: A Memoir by Salman Rushdie and I am about a quarter of the way through that. All books are enjoyable but being busy and stressed at work makes me restless. I tend to switch from listening to books to music in the car and from reading to watching movies at home. Now that I am going to Honolulu to unwind next week I hope to finish at least one of these books. Quote If a believer demands that I, as a non-believer, observe his taboos in the public domain, he is not asking for my respect but for my submission. And that is incompatible with a secular democracy. Flemming Rose (Dutch journalist) My biggest takeaway from economics is that the past wasn't as good as you remember, the present isn't as bad as you think, and the future will be better than you anticipate. Morgan Housel http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2016/01/14/things-im-pretty-sure-about.aspx
Peter F Posted November 30, 2012 Report Posted November 30, 2012 Was it any good? well, kinda dry and scholarly. Not much excitement. No twisting of the plot or anything. But interesting in how the Hapsburgs pawned themselves off as intermediaries between God and their subjects; How many of them actually believed this to be the case; How they kept things in the family through intermarriage; The vast wealth; The vast expenses and the continuous propaganda machine to justify their place in society. Quote A bayonet is a tool with a worker at both ends
Guest American Woman Posted December 11, 2012 Report Posted December 11, 2012 Just started reading The Poisonwood Bible, by Barbara Kingslover, for the second time. Such a good book! Quote
Guest Manny Posted December 12, 2012 Report Posted December 12, 2012 Leon Brillioun, particle velocity and group velocity. No I'm not kidding! Quote
Guest Posted December 12, 2012 Report Posted December 12, 2012 Another thread just put me in mind of this classic. I'm not reading anything but work right now so maybe I'll go dig it out from the basement and read it again. Quote
Pliny Posted December 16, 2012 Report Posted December 16, 2012 (edited) I'm reading de Touqueville's "Democracy in America" Kind of dry but some interesting stuff. Also, I am re-reading "Man vs. the Welfare State" by Henry Hazlitt. I recommend that for a good economic understanding of the effects of government intervention in the market. Edited December 16, 2012 by Pliny Quote I want to be in the class that ensures the classless society remains classless.
msj Posted December 18, 2012 Author Report Posted December 18, 2012 I'm reading de Touqueville's "Democracy in America" Kind of dry but some interesting stuff. Read that in my University days. Good book. Quote If a believer demands that I, as a non-believer, observe his taboos in the public domain, he is not asking for my respect but for my submission. And that is incompatible with a secular democracy. Flemming Rose (Dutch journalist) My biggest takeaway from economics is that the past wasn't as good as you remember, the present isn't as bad as you think, and the future will be better than you anticipate. Morgan Housel http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2016/01/14/things-im-pretty-sure-about.aspx
msj Posted December 18, 2012 Author Report Posted December 18, 2012 So, went away to Honolulu. Didn't finish any of the books I wanted to. Been back for a week now and I am now very close to finishing Salman Rushdie's Joseph Anton: A Memoir. Overall it's a interesting read. Most of the book deals with the fatwa against him, what life was really like for him and friends and family during those years, the criticisms of him and his protection, the case for why standing up to state sponsored terrorism and for freedom of expression is so important, etc... The final quarter of the book is weak but overall one of the more cerebral biographies/memoirs I've read. Quote If a believer demands that I, as a non-believer, observe his taboos in the public domain, he is not asking for my respect but for my submission. And that is incompatible with a secular democracy. Flemming Rose (Dutch journalist) My biggest takeaway from economics is that the past wasn't as good as you remember, the present isn't as bad as you think, and the future will be better than you anticipate. Morgan Housel http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2016/01/14/things-im-pretty-sure-about.aspx
Wilber Posted December 20, 2012 Report Posted December 20, 2012 Didn't realize Bush_cheney2004 was a masochist for Canadian "non-fiction." Poor guy. Quote "Never trust a man who has not a single redeeming vice". WSC
Wilber Posted December 20, 2012 Report Posted December 20, 2012 All though I did read The Cat's Table not to long ago and enjoyed that. Quote "Never trust a man who has not a single redeeming vice". WSC
Wilber Posted December 20, 2012 Report Posted December 20, 2012 I've also just recently discovered Berard Cornwell. His historical fiction is phenomenal. I highly recommend Gallows Thief and The Fort. I've read a lot of his stuff and I think those are two of his best. I got 1356 to stick in my son in law's stocking. He better let me read it when he's finished. Quote "Never trust a man who has not a single redeeming vice". WSC
Wilber Posted December 20, 2012 Report Posted December 20, 2012 (edited) For me, the best historical fiction ever is the Aubrey- Maturin series by Patrick Obrian. Edited December 20, 2012 by Wilber Quote "Never trust a man who has not a single redeeming vice". WSC
TheNewTeddy Posted December 28, 2012 Report Posted December 28, 2012 I'm reading this post I'm typing. But seriously, I don't read books as such and the reason is because of the company. I find the attitude of many people who do (many, not all) to be problematic. It is similar to those snooty art folks. There seems to be this line of thinking that unless you read books, you are stupid. That those who choose not to read, like me, only do so because we are dumb and/or uneducated. I have no desire to associate with these type of people the same as I have no desire to associate with snooty art people. Quote Feel free to contact me outside the forums. Add "TheNewTeddy" to Twitter, Facebook, or Hotmail to reach me!
msj Posted December 31, 2012 Author Report Posted December 31, 2012 I don't read books as such and the reason is because of the company. I find the attitude of many people who do (many, not all) to be problematic. It is similar to those snooty art folks. There seems to be this line of thinking that unless you read books, you are stupid. That those who choose not to read, like me, only do so because we are dumb and/or uneducated. I have no desire to associate with these type of people the same as I have no desire to associate with snooty art people. I know what you mean. I feel the same way towards scientific paradoxes. I find the attitude of many people who do (many, not all) to be problematic. It is similar to those snooty science folks. There seems to be this line of thinking that unless you think about scientific paradoxes, you are stupid. That those who choose not to think about them, like me, only do so because we are dumb and/or uneducated. I have no desire to associate with these types of people the same as I have no desire to associate with snooty science people. -------------- Anyway, may I recommend, while looking over my glasses and down my nose in my most snootiest way possible, Harold Blooms How to Read and Why? The link is to the audio book version so you are not really "reading" it. Perhaps you could recommend a book on paradoxes that perhaps one of your snooty scientist friends has mentioned? Quote If a believer demands that I, as a non-believer, observe his taboos in the public domain, he is not asking for my respect but for my submission. And that is incompatible with a secular democracy. Flemming Rose (Dutch journalist) My biggest takeaway from economics is that the past wasn't as good as you remember, the present isn't as bad as you think, and the future will be better than you anticipate. Morgan Housel http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2016/01/14/things-im-pretty-sure-about.aspx
Guest American Woman Posted February 2, 2013 Report Posted February 2, 2013 "A Street Cat Named Bob" by James Bowen: "How one man and his cat found hope on the streets" A great read. Good insight into human nature - and how strong an influence the love of, and from, an animal can have. Quote
Guest Posted February 2, 2013 Report Posted February 2, 2013 Stasiland, by Anna Funder. I'm only a few pages in, so I don't know how good it is, but my daughter, who read it first, rates it as excellent. Quote
kimmy Posted February 2, 2013 Report Posted February 2, 2013 "A Street Cat Named Bob" by James Bowen: "How one man and his cat found hope on the streets" A great read. Good insight into human nature - and how strong an influence the love of, and from, an animal can have. Sounds terrific! -k Quote (╯°□°)╯︵ ┻━┻ Friendly forum facilitator! ┬──┬◡ノ(° -°ノ)
GostHacked Posted February 2, 2013 Report Posted February 2, 2013 http://www.readyplayerone.com/ I am almost ashamed that I know and have played many of the games talked about in this book. It's been an interesting read so far(half way through). The OASIS is a global internet immersive simulation. The creator died with no heirs and left easter eggs all over the game world(s) he who collects all will win the inheritance. Some of it will simply make you laugh with a little guilt as you recognize many of the games talked about. For the nerd/geek in you, this is perfect. Quote
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