Which book are you reading now? Volume XI

[Traitorfish]

Yyyyup.

 

[cybrxkhan]

A few days ago I finished reading my favorite book, The Catcher in the RYe, for the second time in my life.

As I predicted, reading it a few years later is a different experience. I picked up on different things I'm surprised I didn't when I was younger. And frankly I appreciate its writing even more than I did previously. It really is better written than I remembered, once you get past Holden's adolescent style. It really is.

 

[Dachs]

Is that referring to what the dark corner of my brain is leading me to think?

Through a hole in the back of his neck.

 

[Arakhor]

Yyyyup.

I'll "look forward" to that phrase then.

 

[Integral]

I picked up Joel Mokyr's Gifts of Athena. It's yet another book on economic development in general and the Industrial Revolution in particular.

I suspect that I'll never find the time to read it.

 

[Mango Elephant]

A few days ago I finished reading my favorite book, The Catcher in the RYe, for the second time in my life.

As I predicted, reading it a few years later is a different experience. I picked up on different things I'm surprised I didn't when I was younger. And frankly I appreciate its writing even more than I did previously. It really is better written than I remembered, once you get past Holden's adolescent style. It really is.

That book kills me. It really does.

 

[Verarde]

It's a good read, but it's a bit of a curious school read. Unless you were homeschooled back then?

Yes, I was.

 

[Antilogic]

So, I've finished up the old crop, including the second volume by Hobsbawm. My current reading list is:

Nature's Metropolis by William Cronon - It's a history of the city of Chicago. I haven't read much on the history of urbanization since a class I took in undergrad years ago, so I'm looking forward to diving into this one (I'm on page 4 or 5 of the prologue, not much to say yet). The blurb on the back talks about environmental, economical, and institutional changes from the 19th century to today, so it's casting a fairly broad net (which means it will either be a great work of synthesis or a confusing flop).

The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt by Edmund Morris - I first saw this trilogy on The Daily Show, been waiting to read them for some time. The first book covers Theodore Roosevelt's childhood and early political life, which is what I'm reading now. I probably could have skipped this book given that I'm more interested in his presidency (which is the subject of the second volume), but it is interesting enough that I'm sticking around. Plus, he was involved in the Republican convention that put up James Blaine and later the Secretary of the Navy, Governor of New York, and Vice Presidency in rapid succession, not to mention that stint with the Rough Riders... I think there's a payoff coming.

Added one more book to this list:

The Impending Crisis: America Before The Civil War 1848-1861 by David Potter - It's a detailed look at the nationwide political atmosphere and presidential administrations in the lead-up to the American Civil War. Finished the Taylor administration and Clay's grab for leadership, the rise and tarnishing of Stephen Douglas's career, and moving into Fillmore now. Fillmore comes off looking much better, more of a missed opportunity than a bad candidate. Potter also does a good job at comparing various explanations (whether cultural, economic, etc.) for the divergence between the North and South and synthesizing a more complete picture of what is going on. Would recommend.

I really enjoyed The Scarlet Letter.

Spoiler alert!

Spoiler :

It's an "A".

Never liked Hawthorne's book or Thomas Hardy (had to read both for one class in high school, that was terrible).

 

[cardgame]

David Hume - An Inquiry Into Human Understanding.

 

[Luckymoose]

Premium Reprint of the 1st Edition Advanced Dungeons & Dragons Dungeon Masters Guide by Gary Gygax.

 

[Antilogic]

Somebody actually reads the old AD&D books?

 

[Arakhor]

When I was at school, they were great fun.

 

[Luckymoose]

Somebody actually reads the old AD&D books?

Yes. Gygaxian prose is one of the best things in the history of the game, and as far as I am concerned 1st Edition is the best. I read them cover to cover, because it is one of my hobbies.

 

[JamesCaesar]

Been speeding through the Rangers Apprentice series for fun, onto Book 4 currently.

 

[caketastydelish]

the vikings by Else Roesdahl

 

[Dachs]

Richard A. Billows - Antigonos the One-Eyed and the Creation of the Hellenistic State. Useful on systemic factors and one of those rare modern books that provides an in-depth military-political narrative of the decades immediately following the death of Alexander.

 

[Masada]

The Year of the Flood - Margaret Atwood
Oryx and Crake - Margaret Atwood
Islamising Indonesia - Yon Machmudi
Anglo-Saxons: The Synthesis and Achievement - J. Douglas Woods, David A. E. Pelteret
Stasiland: Stories from Behind the Berlin Wall - Anna Funder

 

[SS-18 ICBM]

Since none of the history books suggested to me weren't in my university library's collection (the local campus. The downtown campus has it, naturally.), I'll read Microbial Biotechnology Principles and Applications until I figure out which part of the world I want to examine next (leaning towards Turkey, may change my mind later). Technical, with each section written by (a) different author/s. Published 2003, but most of the methods are basic and thus should still be current.

 

[Borachio]

Shakespeare Romeo and Juliet (Arden Edition)

+ Zefferelli movie + BBC film + Leonardo Dicaprio movie + Globe Theatre DVD

 

[Antilogic]

Somebody's lovesick.