books you've read !
- Thread starter toniglandyl
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lmao! ^
btw, no more Bible for me. That stuff is a sleeper.
Polychron, if you need an easy way to off yourself...
btw, no more Bible for me. That stuff is a sleeper.
Polychron, if you need an easy way to off yourself...
Charles Darwin's Origin of Species - 8/10
Though I was familiar with the concepts before, reading them in Darwin's words was an interesting experience. I found the chapter on the evolution and natural selection of instinct particularly interesting, and of that the section on slave-making ants was fascinating. However, I'm not entirely satisfied with his explanation of the evolution of a Bee's instinct to build geometrically perfect hives. Unfortunately I had expected a chapter to mention, if only briefly, man's descent with modification, knowing, of course, that it would be detailed more thoroughly in Descent of Man. The writing was strong and interesting throughout, though purely scientific, and therefore rather heavy. I certainly recommend it if biology, Darwin, or evolution interests you in the slightest, but it is a large commitment.
Samuel Butler's Erewhon - 5/10
I read this as part of my readings on technology, as well as evolution. It only seems fair to follow Origin of Species with what many considered a satire of it, though Butler responded that this was in no way his intention. The book is the story of an adventurer who finds himself in the nation of Erewhon (an anagram of Nowhere), where machines have been outlawed for fear of their developing sentience, where sickness is a punishable crime, and moral ill-will is treated through hospitalization. However, in the place of a grand adventure, the narrator spend the majority of the book describing and criticizing the Erewhonian ways, which serves as an indirect means for Butler to criticize England. The chapters "The Book of the Machines" was very interesting though and, to me, worth what was otherwise uninteresting.
Daniel Quinn's Ishmael - 2/10
Apparently this book won awards, though I can only guess how. The writing is atrocious—try reading the first paragraph (available on amazon via "Look Inside") without setting the book down—and the premise is not much better. I can only assume that the idea (neo-luddism without the anarchy, or new tribalism) seemed original to its audience, and that is why it gained a following. However, there are much better books out there covering the same topics; don't bother reading Ishmael.
Though I was familiar with the concepts before, reading them in Darwin's words was an interesting experience. I found the chapter on the evolution and natural selection of instinct particularly interesting, and of that the section on slave-making ants was fascinating. However, I'm not entirely satisfied with his explanation of the evolution of a Bee's instinct to build geometrically perfect hives. Unfortunately I had expected a chapter to mention, if only briefly, man's descent with modification, knowing, of course, that it would be detailed more thoroughly in Descent of Man. The writing was strong and interesting throughout, though purely scientific, and therefore rather heavy. I certainly recommend it if biology, Darwin, or evolution interests you in the slightest, but it is a large commitment.
Samuel Butler's Erewhon - 5/10
I read this as part of my readings on technology, as well as evolution. It only seems fair to follow Origin of Species with what many considered a satire of it, though Butler responded that this was in no way his intention. The book is the story of an adventurer who finds himself in the nation of Erewhon (an anagram of Nowhere), where machines have been outlawed for fear of their developing sentience, where sickness is a punishable crime, and moral ill-will is treated through hospitalization. However, in the place of a grand adventure, the narrator spend the majority of the book describing and criticizing the Erewhonian ways, which serves as an indirect means for Butler to criticize England. The chapters "The Book of the Machines" was very interesting though and, to me, worth what was otherwise uninteresting.
Daniel Quinn's Ishmael - 2/10
Apparently this book won awards, though I can only guess how. The writing is atrocious—try reading the first paragraph (available on amazon via "Look Inside") without setting the book down—and the premise is not much better. I can only assume that the idea (neo-luddism without the anarchy, or new tribalism) seemed original to its audience, and that is why it gained a following. However, there are much better books out there covering the same topics; don't bother reading Ishmael.
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Terry Pratchett - Unseen Academicals 10/10
Brilliant! even though it was annotated :-( his latest book I shall Wear Midnight was written using Dragon Naturally Speaking and I can’t wait to read it
Brilliant! even though it was annotated :-( his latest book I shall Wear Midnight was written using Dragon Naturally Speaking and I can’t wait to read it
Kyllian
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My GF would give you a bit hug for that rating for she is a huge Pratchett fan.
Unfortunately his alzheimer's is kicking his ass and she's been noticing the difference :\
yeah i had a bit of a girl moment when i found out as well
If you havent read his stuff
Do it now
Kyllian
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Read a few, mostly ones related to the Watch.
Good stuff, but I usually have a hard time getting into mystical fiction
The only "mystical" series I've gotten into is the Dresden Files books
Good stuff, but I usually have a hard time getting into mystical fiction
The only "mystical" series I've gotten into is the Dresden Files books
Machine of Death.
It's not really a book. It's a collection of short stories.
Very entertaining & well worth the read
It's not really a book. It's a collection of short stories.
Very entertaining & well worth the read
While it has been some time since I read these, I would recommend Huckleberry Finn and To Kill a Mockingbird.
Why not? It's an interesting view point into his presidency and I think he actually did a good job with it.
I was considering picking this up when I heard the list of writers and artists, especially as the creators of my favorite webcomics are involved. It seems an interesting premise anyway. However, as of many collections, I am concerned the overall quality would waver. I am also concerned about the quality of the pre-story illustrations, mainly because it's paperback. Thus, do you think it is worth buying new, or should I wait for the half- or quarter-priced, used copies to start showing up on amazon?
Do you think it was ghost written? And is it worth owning? (Perhaps more importantly, is it insightful?)
EDIT: Also, can anyone recommend a good book on paleoindians? (Kinda doubt it, but query worthy.)
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Well, I'm not surprised, but I'm disappointed. I guess I'll skip the "auto"-biography, wait, and read historian biographies instead.
Don't be disappointed. Nearly all historical/celebrity figures have ghost-writers, just like they also have speech writers. The point isn't their writing ability, but the expression of their ideas, which are still theirs even when communicated through a medium. Here is the general rule of thumb: If the person was famous for something other than writing, the book they've written has a 99% chance of being ghostwritten. Obviously not everyone has a ghost writer (Jimmy Carter comes to mind), but it holds fairly true.
~Jason
Charles Darwin's Autobiography - 8/10
Unless you're familiar with his other work, it may be best not to bother with the autobiography. It is an interesting insight into his development, and surprisingly fun, but in some ways quite lacking. The primary point of interest to me was the chapter on religion, which in editions prior to 1959 was significantly censored. Thus, if you wish to read it, make sure it is the correct edition (I bought the version published by Norton, and am quite pleased with it).
Richard Dawkins's The God Delusion - 9/10
I picked up this book partially as my continued pursuit to balance my reading—in this case to provide the atheist alternative to the book I reviewed below—but also because of a hilariously witty Lecture by Dawkins I'd watched a few weeks back, in which he presents a few chapters from this book. However, if you find that lecture uninteresting, then you probably won't like the book. The middle chapters on biology are a little heavier, and less powerful (at least to me) than the passages more specifically on religion (see the lecture for one such excerpt), but the book held my interest, and was well written throughout.
Josh McDowell's More than A Carpenter - 1/10
This book is great for parties. Each guest takes a turn reading a passage, and the first guest who isn't the current reader to correctly label the logical fallacy within the passage gains a point. Though I didn't actually do this, I'm certainly tempted. And considering the frequency of logical fallacies (mostly non sequitur and post hoc, with oversimplification for occasional variety), it could make for a grand time. (And my rules could easily be accommodated to make it a drinking game.) Unfortunately it was not with this in mind that my mother gave it to me; moreover, that this was the best she could find of Christian apologists is either demonstrative of theology, or my mother, I don't know which.
Unless you're familiar with his other work, it may be best not to bother with the autobiography. It is an interesting insight into his development, and surprisingly fun, but in some ways quite lacking. The primary point of interest to me was the chapter on religion, which in editions prior to 1959 was significantly censored. Thus, if you wish to read it, make sure it is the correct edition (I bought the version published by Norton, and am quite pleased with it).
Richard Dawkins's The God Delusion - 9/10
I picked up this book partially as my continued pursuit to balance my reading—in this case to provide the atheist alternative to the book I reviewed below—but also because of a hilariously witty Lecture by Dawkins I'd watched a few weeks back, in which he presents a few chapters from this book. However, if you find that lecture uninteresting, then you probably won't like the book. The middle chapters on biology are a little heavier, and less powerful (at least to me) than the passages more specifically on religion (see the lecture for one such excerpt), but the book held my interest, and was well written throughout.
Josh McDowell's More than A Carpenter - 1/10
This book is great for parties. Each guest takes a turn reading a passage, and the first guest who isn't the current reader to correctly label the logical fallacy within the passage gains a point. Though I didn't actually do this, I'm certainly tempted. And considering the frequency of logical fallacies (mostly non sequitur and post hoc, with oversimplification for occasional variety), it could make for a grand time. (And my rules could easily be accommodated to make it a drinking game.) Unfortunately it was not with this in mind that my mother gave it to me; moreover, that this was the best she could find of Christian apologists is either demonstrative of theology, or my mother, I don't know which.
Here's my top books so far in no particular order.
Author - C.J.Samson
If there is a series of books that I could recommend anyone to read by this author - it would be these I've listed here - they are spectacular in their scope and detail and chronicle the life of a hunchbacked lawyer Matthew Shardlake, working for Thomas Cromwell during the reign of Henry 8th.
The level of detail described by the author in these books is just incredible.
In order they are:
The latest book I've read is called The Terror by Dan Simmons
The novel is a fictionalized account of Captain Sir John Franklin's lost expedition of HMS Erebus and HMS Terror to the Arctic to force the Northwest Passage in 1845–1848. In the novel, while Franklin and his crew are plagued by starvation and scurvy and forced to contend with mutiny and cannibalism, they are stalked across the bleak Arctic landscape by a monster
To say this was a superb read would be an understatement - you simply must read this book.
As you can see, I tend to like my history but I'm equally keen on an excellent Sci_Fi novel - if you have any suggestions on those, I'd be more than interested to hear about them, so please list them here if you think they're a 'must read'.
I also like a good thriller - I can recommend David Baldacci and his Camel Club series of books - really good reads as well.
Author - C.J.Samson
If there is a series of books that I could recommend anyone to read by this author - it would be these I've listed here - they are spectacular in their scope and detail and chronicle the life of a hunchbacked lawyer Matthew Shardlake, working for Thomas Cromwell during the reign of Henry 8th.
The level of detail described by the author in these books is just incredible.
In order they are:
The latest book I've read is called The Terror by Dan Simmons
The novel is a fictionalized account of Captain Sir John Franklin's lost expedition of HMS Erebus and HMS Terror to the Arctic to force the Northwest Passage in 1845–1848. In the novel, while Franklin and his crew are plagued by starvation and scurvy and forced to contend with mutiny and cannibalism, they are stalked across the bleak Arctic landscape by a monster
To say this was a superb read would be an understatement - you simply must read this book.
As you can see, I tend to like my history but I'm equally keen on an excellent Sci_Fi novel - if you have any suggestions on those, I'd be more than interested to hear about them, so please list them here if you think they're a 'must read'.
I also like a good thriller - I can recommend David Baldacci and his Camel Club series of books - really good reads as well.
The latest book I've read is called The Terror by Dan Simmons
The novel is a fictionalized account of Captain Sir John Franklin's lost expedition of HMS Erebus and HMS Terror to the Arctic to force the Northwest Passage in 1845–1848. In the novel, while Franklin and his crew are plagued by starvation and scurvy and forced to contend with mutiny and cannibalism, they are stalked across the bleak Arctic landscape by a monster
To say this was a superb read would be an understatement - you simply must read this book.
As you can see, I tend to like my history but I'm equally keen on an excellent Sci_Fi novel - if you have any suggestions on those, I'd be more than interested to hear about them, so please list them here if you think they're a 'must read'.
Read Dan Simmons' Hyperion & Fall of Hyperion. (Endymion and Rise of Endymion are optional.) Must read.
Other science fiction I'd recommend:
Richard K. Morgan - Altered Carbon. After a certain sequence in this book, I literally put the book down because it was so intense. This is a noir detective story wrapped up in science fiction.
Peter F. Hamilton - Pandora's Star & Judas Unchained. Great epic science fiction told through a series of different interwoven stories.
Robert Charles Wilson - Spin. I picked this one up on a whim and it blew me away. Current-day hard science fiction and human drama. I'd recommend this even to people who don't like science fiction at all.
Vernor Vinge -A Fire Upon the Deep & A Deepness in the Sky. Not sure how to describe these two succinctly. One is a huge fantastical space opera, the other is a much more limited scope. Both feature really interesting, fleshed out alien races as part of their core concept.
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