Author Topic: What books are you reading? (Read 737432 times)

MerleOne · « **Reply #300 on:** May 23, 2012, 01:10 AM »

That happens all the time with TV shows BTW (sorry for being slightly OT). I am thinking for instance to SAAB (Space Above and Beyond) which had a few nice points but was cancelled with more questions opened than closed.

TaoPhoenix · « **Reply #301 on:** May 26, 2012, 12:49 AM »

Here it is, although in Alpha form. (Edit: My project for a layout plugin stalled.)

These are the books in my Science Fiction Becoming News project.

http://www.freevoteu...Books/Bookindex.html

There's nothing in the sub nodes yet, but I'm excited with the dynamic menu.

TaoPhoenix · « **Reply #302 on:** June 07, 2012, 04:29 AM »

Random entry:
Christopher Anvil collection RX For Chaos.
Interesting note: It came out in 2008, and I just got around to looking at Wikipedia and noticed that the author passed on only a year after that. So Baen books must have decided to ask him for republishing rights while he was still alive both to make him feel good / send him a little money for his funeral costs, and maybe to avoid estate wrangling.

At a glacial pace, I am doing a project relating certain fiction which was ahead of its time with subsequent news stories that cast the original story in new context of relevance. Turns out that a full third of what were once SciFi stories he wrote are *just now* hitting the news. Typical example: A hilarious pseudo-documentary from *1978* called "A Handheld Primer" is just now describing the iPhone-Android wars.

rjbull · « **Reply #303 on:** August 26, 2012, 02:58 PM »

Just finished: Dark Fire, by C.J. Sansom, the second in his "Shardlake" series, that starts with Dissolution. These are outstanding historical thrillers, set at the time of Henry VIII.

tomos · « **Reply #304 on:** August 27, 2012, 08:26 AM »

Just finished: Dark Fire, by C.J. Sansom, the second in his "Shardlake" series, that starts with Dissolution. These are outstanding historical thrillers, set at the time of Henry VIII.
-rjbull (August 26, 2012, 02:58 PM)

must check that out.

A while back I read Pope Joan by Donna Woolfolk Cross. It's a really good novel -not a thriller as such, but lots of suspense in there- based on the story that there was a female pope in the early middle ages. Wikipedia doesnt have much faith in the story but that's besides the point really ;-)
http://en.wikipedia....nalysis_and_critique

That was one of the first historical novels I've read. I moved on to The Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett (1989) about the building of a cathedral in 12thC England. It is a good read, very gripping - but the writing at times gets in the way of the story. There was a bit of a low in the middle where I almost gave up - but at 1,150 pages in my copy, he did well to keep me reading to the end.

kyrathaba · « **Reply #305 on:** August 27, 2012, 03:52 PM »

I like Ken Follett. Haven't read Pillars yet, but I've read Jackdaws and A Place Called Freedom.

Just finished Life Form by Alan Dean Foster.

Currently, I'm reading the third and final novel in Greg Bear's "Eon" series.

joiwind · « **Reply #306 on:** August 27, 2012, 04:12 PM »

The Quincunx by Charles Palliser - it's like Dickens to the power of ten.

f0dder · « **Reply #307 on:** August 27, 2012, 04:48 PM »

Recently finished:
Freedom
Effective Java, 2nd edition
If You Meet The Buddha On The Road, Kill Him (bought it because it's Peter Bishop's favorite book

)
Fahrenheit 451 (about time - already did Animal Farm, Brave New World, Catch 22 and 1984.)

Currently reading:
The God Delusion (preaching to the choir, I love his dry British humour.)

Next up:
TiHKAL or
The Doors Of Perception

4wd · « **Reply #308 on:** August 28, 2012, 01:51 AM »

Currently reading:

Update: If you want to read a Koontz novel for the first time - I recommend you don't start with this one. After reading this and then going back to read the reviews on Amazon I'd have to agree with almost every person who gave it 3 stars or less. This is one of the most tedious books I've ever waded through and I ended up just skip-reading whole pages at a time, (possibly about 30% of the book as a whole). His Frankenstein series is far, far better than this.

40hz · « **Reply #309 on:** August 28, 2012, 09:25 AM »

The 351 Books of Irma Arcuri: A Novel by David Bajo

The publisher's synopsis sums it up quite well:

Throughout mathematician Philip Masyrk's peripatetic life, there has been only one constant: Irma Arcuri. Their ongoing love affair has endured his two marriages and her countless travels. But now Irma has vanished, leaving Philip her library of 351 books, including five written by Irma herself. Buried somewhere within her luxuriously rebound volumes of Cervantes and Turgenev, Borges and Fowles, lies the secret to her disappearance-and Philip soon realizes that he is trapped within their narratives as well. Who is Irma Arcuri? What is really hidden in the library? And most importantly, whose story is this?

Bogs down in a few places. And the inevitable sex scenes weren't handled all that well. (It's harder to write a good piece of erotica than most people think.) And none of the characters are even remotely likeable. Something that surprised me considering the story works reasonably well despite that.

My only complaint was that the reveal and payoff didn't quite do enough justice to the premise and build-up. Which is unfortunate since this is a story about playing a variant of the god-game. But it's a brainy-fun read nevertheless. If you like Fowles, especially his book The Magus, you'll feel right at home here.

For technical reading there's Nmap Network Scanning: The Official Nmap Project Guide to Network Discovery and Security Scanning by Gordon Lyon and Nick Marsh's most excellent NMAP Cookbook.

I always suspected I wasn't using NMAP to anywhere near its full potential. Turns out I was right.

I'm about half way through Lyons' book. And I'm 'page hopping' Marsh's book at the same time. Both are good. Together they're very good. Recommended.

nosh · « **Reply #310 on:** August 28, 2012, 02:00 PM »

I've picked up Ayn Rand's The Fountainhead once again. I'd abandoned it years back, I remember it being interesting but a similar scenario played out in the story once too often and I lost patience. Hope to complete it this time... (once I get through all those missed Breaking Bad episodes.

)

40hz · « **Reply #311 on:** August 29, 2012, 11:03 AM »

@nosh - I have serious misgivings about Ayn Rand. Probably because I've known far too many otherwise smart people who swallowed her 'arguments' lock stock and barrel. And I personally consider The Fountainhead and Atlas Shrugged to be two of the more dangerous (and not in a good way) books ever penned. Right up there with Mein Kampf and most of the works of Nietzsche. (Please don't ask me what I consider to be the the most dangerous books ever written.

)

By all means read her novels.

But if you find yourself too readily buying into her Objectivist Philosophy, do yourself a favor and read this and this afterwards.

f0dder · « **Reply #312 on:** August 29, 2012, 11:16 AM »

(Please don't ask me what I consider to be the the most dangerous books ever written. )
-40hz (August 29, 2012, 11:03 AM)

There's two of them, isn't there? (Perhaps three, if you consider the first book to consist of and old and a new part).

40hz · « **Reply #313 on:** August 29, 2012, 11:20 AM »

(Please don't ask me what I consider to be the the most dangerous books ever written. )
-40hz (August 29, 2012, 11:03 AM)
There's two of them, isn't there? (Perhaps three, if you consider the first book to consist of and old and a new part).
-f0dder (August 29, 2012, 11:16 AM)

Yes two. One consisting of an old part and a new part, plus its "next generation" sequel. Put them together and they've probably provided the 'rationale' and the 'justification' for more bloodshed and suffering than anything else ever written.

nosh · « **Reply #314 on:** August 29, 2012, 12:35 PM »

Thanks 40, I'll bear that in mind. I've been curious about objectivism for a while now, because it gets referenced from time to time in pop culture.

otherwise smart people...

Looks like I have the upper hand here.

I didn't get "the most dangerous books" part till I read f0dder's comment... see what I mean? There's atleast one other book in that genre that I consider equally dangerous.

Thanks for the links too. I'll come back to them once I've heard what Ms.Rand has to say.

Attronarch · « **Reply #315 on:** August 29, 2012, 05:39 PM »

The Machine That Changed The World

But if you find yourself too readily buying into her Objectivist Philosophy, do yourself a favor and read this and this afterwards.
-40hz (August 29, 2012, 11:03 AM)

Now, that was quite interesting and fun read.

40hz · « **Reply #316 on:** August 29, 2012, 09:18 PM »

The Machine That Changed The World

But if you find yourself too readily buying into her Objectivist Philosophy, do yourself a favor and read this and this afterwards.
-40hz (August 29, 2012, 11:03 AM)

Now, that was quite interesting and fun read.
-Attronarch (August 29, 2012, 05:39 PM)

+1! Real philosophical discussions usually are if you take the time to read and digest them. And Bob Nozick is always a good read. Check out this book Anarchy, State, and Utopia for more.

Shades · « **Reply #317 on:** August 30, 2012, 12:37 PM »

(Please don't ask me what I consider to be the the most dangerous books ever written. )
-40hz (August 29, 2012, 11:03 AM)
There's two of them, isn't there? (Perhaps three, if you consider the first book to consist of and old and a new part).
-f0dder (August 29, 2012, 11:16 AM)

Yes two. One consisting of an old part and a new part, plus its "next generation" sequel. Put them together and they've probably provided the 'rationale' and the 'justification' for more bloodshed and suffering than anything else ever written.

-40hz (August 29, 2012, 11:20 AM)

The sequel...would that be the one from the L.D.S.? (We would be in total agreement if that is the case)

40hz · « **Reply #318 on:** August 30, 2012, 02:42 PM »

(Please don't ask me what I consider to be the the most dangerous books ever written. )
-40hz (August 29, 2012, 11:03 AM)
There's two of them, isn't there? (Perhaps three, if you consider the first book to consist of and old and a new part).
-f0dder (August 29, 2012, 11:16 AM)

Yes two. One consisting of an old part and a new part, plus its "next generation" sequel. Put them together and they've probably provided the 'rationale' and the 'justification' for more bloodshed and suffering than anything else ever written.

-40hz (August 29, 2012, 11:20 AM)

The sequel...would that be the one from the L.D.S.? (We would be in total agreement if that is the case)
-Shades (August 30, 2012, 12:37 PM)

Oops. Make that three books.

TaoPhoenix · « **Reply #319 on:** August 30, 2012, 03:23 PM »

I tend to only read parts of books lately. (A few years now.)

It's because when I do projects I work laterally, so any one book basically only has 1-6 chapters that really fit.

mouser · « **Reply #320 on:** August 30, 2012, 03:40 PM »

Next up for me is a book on set theory -- something I haven't read about since I was an undergraduate.

mahesh2k · « **Reply #321 on:** August 30, 2012, 03:45 PM »

Thanks to 40hz, got hands on 101 Zen stories book. Worth a read.

Two books in queue -

48 Laws of Power - Robert Greene
What every BODY is saying.

TaoPhoenix · « **Reply #322 on:** August 30, 2012, 03:51 PM »

Thanks to 40hz, got hands on 101 Zen stories book. Worth a read.

Two books in queue -

48 Laws of Power - Robert Greene
What every BODY is saying.
-mahesh2k (August 30, 2012, 03:45 PM)

Which 101 Zen Stories? There's a couple (ish). Blue Cliff Record is the most famous one, but then there's a second one that ... is hiding in my library.

mahesh2k · « **Reply #323 on:** August 30, 2012, 03:56 PM »

Zen flesh zen bones by paul reps.

40hz · « **Reply #324 on:** August 30, 2012, 04:20 PM »

Thanks to 40hz, got hands on 101 Zen stories book. Worth a read.
-mahesh2k (August 30, 2012, 03:45 PM)

Glad you like it. I think it's one of the best things I've ever read. Possibly the best considering the difference it made in my life and way of thinking.

Which 101 Zen Stories?
-TaoPhoenix (August 30, 2012, 03:51 PM)

The one I'm referring to is by Nyogen Senzaki (details here). It's more accessible and playful than The Blue Cliff Record with its collection of 100 koans with commentaries. Senzaki's book has been excepted and translated to create 101 Zen Stories which is one of four 'books' released as a collection by Paul Reps under the title Zen Flesh, Zen Bones. The other pieces in the collection are The Gateless Gate, Ten Bulls, and Centering.