What Book Are YOU Currently Reading? PART II

Questions on how we spend our money and our time - consumer goods and services, home and vehicle, leisure and recreational activities
Sam I Am
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Post by Sam I Am »

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Puakinekine
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Post by Puakinekine »

Patchy Groundfog wrote:Re-reading "A Dance to the Music of Time," by Anthony Powell. Twelve novels, originally published between the early 1950s and 1975, now gathered into four volumes. It's a highly entertaining social history of England from just before World War I through the 1960s.
The BBC did a mini-series of this. It was an excellent rendition of the books, aside from the problem of having actors age over long adult life spans. They changed actors for some characters but kept the same actor for Widmerpool (perhaps because he was already 60 at 16). Neither method really worked, but all in all I highly recommend the production. I highly recommend the books as well.
Patchy Groundfog
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Post by Patchy Groundfog »

Puakinekine wrote:
Patchy Groundfog wrote:Re-reading "A Dance to the Music of Time," by Anthony Powell. Twelve novels, originally published between the early 1950s and 1975, now gathered into four volumes. It's a highly entertaining social history of England from just before World War I through the 1960s.
The BBC did a mini-series of this. It was an excellent rendition of the books, aside from the problem of having actors age over long adult life spans. They changed actors for some characters but kept the same actor for Widmerpool (perhaps because he was already 60 at 16). Neither method really worked, but all in all I highly recommend the production. I highly recommend the books as well.
Thank you for the recommendation - I'll see if I can get the series from Blockbuster later. I'm only halfway through this third (since 1979) reading.

It will be interesting to see how the actors fit my mental image of some of the characters. My Widmerpool, who may not resemble anybody else's Widmerpool, looks a lot like the guy who plays Dwight Shrute on The Office.
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gd
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Post by gd »

Unseen Academicals, new Terry Pratchett.

When Douglas Adams died I figured that was the end of that. Then I discovered Pratchett. I sometimes use german versions to practice my incorrigible bad german, because every paragraph is entertaining enough to tease out word by word.
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Frobie
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Post by Frobie »

Finished American Prometheus, now on to Downfall: The End of the Imperial Japanese Empire by Richard B. Frank.

I've been pretty lucky lately; those two + Guests of the Ayatollah = the best stretch of books I've had in a awhile. YMMV.

Jeff
I have learned that success is to be measured not so much by the position that one has reached in life as by the obstacles which he has had to overcome while trying to succeed. --Booker T. Washington
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CountryBoy
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Post by CountryBoy »

Empire of Illusion by Chris Hedges.

That last chapter is something that everyone needs to read and think about.
Magnificent.
bearcub
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Post by bearcub »

Lord of the Flies by William Golding
Seen the movie years ago. Been saying I am going to read this book for the last 30 years. Finally doing it. Now thats procrastination.
bradshaw1965
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Post by bradshaw1965 »

Juliet, Naked
Nick Hornby

I always enjoy Nick Hornby and we are blessed to have a good writer who is also prolific.
chaz
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Post by chaz »

"The Black Echo" by Michael Connelly.
Chaz | | “Money is better than poverty, if only for financial reasons." Woody Allen | | http://www.bogleheads.org/wiki/index.php/Main_Page
natarajnv
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Post by natarajnv »

- Cows, pigs, wars, and witches by Mervin Harris

Going to start
- Al Gore's Our Choice
- The Greatest Show on Earth: The Evidence for Evolution by Richard Dawkins
Sam I Am
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Post by Sam I Am »

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Tall Grass
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Post by Tall Grass »

"The Lovers" by John Connolly...P.I. Charlie Parker, along with his pals Angel and Louis, search for the reasons why his police officer father commited suicide.
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"A wise man should have money in his head, but not in his heart." - Jonathan Swift
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Fletch
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Post by Fletch »

Hawke by Ted Bell.

Amazon.com Review
A James Bond for the 21st century, Alex Hawke is suave, sexy, smart, wealthy, and deadly. And he's got the bloodlines to prove it--the direct descendant of a famous English pirate, the British secret agent is back in the Caribbean where his ancestor once amassed a legendary fortune and where, decades ago, his own parents were brutally tortured and murdered for a secret Alex, to this day, doesn't know he has in his possession. What brings Alex back to the scene of a crime he only vaguely remembers witnessing as a child is a mission to find and recover a stealth submarine that's gone missing less than a hundred miles from the American mainland, complete with 40 nuclear warheads and a rogue terrorist's finger on the countdown button. It's a hoary premise, but Bell makes it work with skillful plotting, quick characterizations, and a lively hero who deserves a sequel, not to mention the big screen treatment. --Jane Adams
chaz
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Post by chaz »

"The Black Ice" by Michael Connelly.
Chaz | | “Money is better than poverty, if only for financial reasons." Woody Allen | | http://www.bogleheads.org/wiki/index.php/Main_Page
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dkdoy
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Post by dkdoy »

Churhill by Martin Gilbert
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stratton
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Post by stratton »

Torch of Freedom by David Weber & Eric Flint.

One of three parallel book tracks in the Honorverse.

Paul
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nisiprius
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Post by nisiprius »

My Uncle Oswald by Raold Dahl, best known for his kids books such as Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. A follow-up to my having read the very interest The Irregulars, a nonfiction book about the activities of Dahl, Ian Fleming, and other members of the British spy ring who spied on the United States during the World War II.

My Uncle Oswald , not for kids, is weird. Mildly funny in some places but not very, and fairly unpleasant. Yet I keep turning the pages. It is an achievement of sorts to write a book so entirely based on coarse humor about sex that is so utterly lacking in eroticism. A good deal of the humor is based on indirect, PG-rated descriptions of sexual encounters between a young woman of loose morals and numerous famous artists, writers, scientists, and European kings; the point is that she is tricking them into donating sperm for ultimate resale.
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Igglesman
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Post by Igglesman »

Under the Dome. Stephen King. Wish I could buy futures on the movie this will be made into. Great read.
polaar
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Post by polaar »

1959: The Year Everything Changed by Fred Kaplan
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catdude
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Post by catdude »

The Grand Slam: Bobby Jones, America, and the Story of Golf, by Mark Frost
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Bharat
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Post by Bharat »

Born to Run by Christopher McDougall. It is a phenomenal book that mixes ultra distance running (30 miles and above), human evolution, a hidden native American tribe of runners and world class ultra-distance runners. Highly recommend!
Everything that you own, owns piece of you.
tj218
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Post by tj218 »

The First World War by John Keegan.
sherwink
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Reading currently

Post by sherwink »

The Guns of August--Barb Tuckman
chaz
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Post by chaz »

I just finished "The Brass Verdict" by Michael Connelly. Next up will be "Dark Of The Moon" by John Sandford.
Chaz | | “Money is better than poverty, if only for financial reasons." Woody Allen | | http://www.bogleheads.org/wiki/index.php/Main_Page
metabasalt
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Post by metabasalt »

Bogleheads Guide to Retirement and Four Pillars of Investing. Enjoying both!
chaz
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Post by chaz »

metabasalt wrote:Bogleheads Guide to Retirement and Four Pillars of Investing. Enjoying both!

Four Pillars of Investing is a great book.
Chaz | | “Money is better than poverty, if only for financial reasons." Woody Allen | | http://www.bogleheads.org/wiki/index.php/Main_Page
metabasalt
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Post by metabasalt »

chaz wrote:
metabasalt wrote:Bogleheads Guide to Retirement and Four Pillars of Investing. Enjoying both!

Four Pillars of Investing is a great book.
I heard that so often here that I finally got my wife to buy it for me for my birthday!
grok87
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Next

Post by grok87 »

Next by Michael Chrichton
RIP Mr. Bogle.
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LH
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Post by LH »

atlas shrugged ayn rand

great book. applicable to modern times. Timeless.
medgar
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Post by medgar »

A Son of the Game by james dodson.

Very enjoyable read if you grew up in a golfing family or had the pleasure to play golf in Pinehurst/Southern Pines area.

I miss the days of playing Pinehurst no. 2 for walk up price of $40.

Medgar
gkaplan
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Post by gkaplan »

Daniel Silva's The Defector
Gordon
chaz
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Post by chaz »

LH wrote:atlas shrugged ayn rand

great book. applicable to modern times. Timeless.


I agree.
Chaz | | “Money is better than poverty, if only for financial reasons." Woody Allen | | http://www.bogleheads.org/wiki/index.php/Main_Page
a686
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Post by a686 »

Atlas Shrugged is great if you like god-awful writing, cardboard characters and sado-masochistic porn, which underlies all the so-called "philosophy".
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catdude
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Post by catdude »

The Little Book of Safe Money, by Jason Zweig
catdude | | All generalizations are false, including this one.
chaz
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Post by chaz »

After "Dark Of The Moon", next will be "Next Lightning" by John Sandford.
Chaz | | “Money is better than poverty, if only for financial reasons." Woody Allen | | http://www.bogleheads.org/wiki/index.php/Main_Page
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catdude
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Post by catdude »

First in His Class, by David Maraniss, a biography of Bill Clinton.
catdude | | All generalizations are false, including this one.
medgar
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Post by medgar »

The first tycoon: life of cornelius vanderbilt.

My winter goal is to read bio's on the early big corporate/rail tycoons.

Rockerfeller Titan
Carnegie Andrew Carnegie
Gould undecided
Morgan House of Morgan

Any better bio's opinions are appreciated.

Medgar
chaz
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Post by chaz »

chaz wrote:After "Dark Of The Moon", next will be "Next Lightning" by John Sandford.
Sorry, should be "Heat Lightning".
Chaz | | “Money is better than poverty, if only for financial reasons." Woody Allen | | http://www.bogleheads.org/wiki/index.php/Main_Page
chaz
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Post by chaz »

Next is "The Narrows" by Michael Connelly.
Chaz | | “Money is better than poverty, if only for financial reasons." Woody Allen | | http://www.bogleheads.org/wiki/index.php/Main_Page
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BlueEars
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Post by BlueEars »

Read Daniel Silva, The Unlikely Spy: German female deep cover agent in England tries to steal secrets of coming Allied invasion. British former professor at MI5 works to stop agents.

And yes, the Allies did win the war.
gkaplan
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Post by gkaplan »

P. D. James' Devices and Desires
Gordon
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Fletch
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Post by Fletch »

The Disciple by Stephen Coonts

Product Description
In this new novel by the New York Times bestselling author, Stephen Coonts, Iran is weeks away from acquiring nuclear weapons and has every intention of using them to strike first— only Tommy Carmellini and Jake Grafton can stop a nuclear nightmare

Iran is much closer to having operational nuclear weapons than the CIA believes, and Iran’s president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, has a plan. Iran will become a martyr nation, and Ahmadinejad will lead the united Muslims of the world in a holy war against the non-believers.

But the Americans have a secret weapon in a group of Iranian dissidents, including a brother and sister determined to avenge the death of their beloved grandfather at the hands of the religious police. They are funneling information to Carmellini. They want to stop the attack before their leader launches a new world war. But will the U.S. government believe the information they are providing, and can the Americans prevent the Israelis from taking matters into their own hands, which could prove disastrous?

Returning to the kind of military and espionage story that made Cuba one of his most successful novels, Coonts weaves an unforgettable tale of men and women at war, with the sort of dramatic military action and undercover technology for which Coonts is known.



About the Author
STEPHEN COONTS is the author of fifteen New York Times bestselling books. A former naval aviator and Vietnam combat veteran, he is a graduate of West Virginia University and the University of Colorado School of Law.
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Tall Grass
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Post by Tall Grass »

This thread is getting soooo long I thought I'd start another to continue our book reviews...look for new thread:

What Book Are YOU Currently Reading? PART III
"A wise man should have money in his head, but not in his heart." - Jonathan Swift
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nisiprius
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Post by nisiprius »

At 1/4 of the way into Bottled Lightning: Superbatteries, Electric Cars, and the New Lithium Economy, by Seth Fletcher, I'm finding it fascinating and willing to recommend it on the basis of what I've read so far.
Annual income twenty pounds, annual expenditure nineteen nineteen and six, result happiness; Annual income twenty pounds, annual expenditure twenty pounds ought and six, result misery.
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