The LPSG Book Club

stretcher74

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first instinct was to fill this with a bunch of literary titles that would impress you with my learnedness. That is books I have managed to slog my way through because I think they are important. As you may know *literature* is what everyone wants to have read, but nobody wants to read (courtesy of Samuel Clemens)

anyways, here are a few books I found interesting:


Rickles' Book, Don Rickles

The Double Helix, James Watson

Iron John, Robert Bly

Meditations,(the) of Marcus Aurelius

Reagan: A Life in Letters

Fifth Business(Deptford Trilogy), Robertson Davies

Brideshead Revisited, Evelyn Waugh

Pimp, Iceberg Slim

The Selfish Gene, Richard Dawkins

The Force of Reason, Oriana Fallaci
 

ClaireTalon

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The (almost) countless number of times I've read those books :biggrin1:

Two of my favourite contemporary sci-fi books are by Neal Stephenson

The Diamond Age: Or, A Young Ladies Illustrated Primer

Cryptonomicon

Cryptonomicon is about the best thing that has ever come out of his pen, the rest of his science fiction work is crap, or at least not my style.

More recommendations from my side:

Bound for Glory by Woody Guthrie. A great insight on the early and defining years of his life. Actually holds little on his music career, but more views on the Oil Boom towns in the west during the 1920s and 30s.

Tin Kickers and Fractions of Zero by Bill Murphy. Too bad this great author only wrote two books before disappearing, both count to my best-read books (and show the traces).

The Scorpion's Gate by Richard Clarke. It holds more talking and explaining than actual action, but gives a new angle on the old topic of mid-east conflicts, and the US commitment therein.

Freefall by William & Marilyn Hoffer. The incredible (but true) story of an Air Canada flight that ran out of fuel at FL400 in 1983.
 

snoozan

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first instinct was to fill this with a bunch of literary titles that would impress you with my learnedness. That is books I have managed to slog my way through because I think they are important. As you may know *literature* is what everyone wants to have read, but nobody wants to read (courtesy of Samuel Clemens)

I thought the same thing! Then I just listed books that I liked.

Speaking of which, tomorrow is Bloomsday, the day that James Joyce's Ulysses took place. I've read Ulysses. It's one of those books that you read because it's (arguably) the best English novel ever written (or some rot like that), and though it's an amazing book, it's not exactly a fun read.

Anyway, everyone have a happy Bloomsday.

Oh! How could I forget to list Fear and Loating in Las Vegas or anything else written by Hunter S. Thompson?
 

Belly_Dancer

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first instinct was to fill this with a bunch of literary titles that would impress you with my learnedness. That is books I have managed to slog my way through because I think they are important.

Thank you, stretcher74! I find reading recommendations to be much more helpful when the books were enjoyed by "real" people, rather than just lauded by literary critics (I know, I know, quite a few books are both, and if anyone on this site is a literary critic, I mean you no offense).

I have no problem admitting I read primarily for entertainment, and not necessarily to better myself or to become "well read." :wink:
 

stretcher74

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I thought the same thing! Then I just listed books that I liked.

Speaking of which, tomorrow is Bloomsday, the day that James Joyce's Ulysses took place. I've read Ulysses. It's one of those books that you read because it's (arguably) the best English novel ever written (or some rot like that), and though it's an amazing book, it's not exactly a fun read.

Anyway, everyone have a happy Bloomsday.

Oh! How could I forget to list Fear and Loating in Las Vegas or anything else written by Hunter S. Thompson?

I've seen the movie.

I've of course read Ulysses (barely). I'm left 10 years later with the image of a few scenes and turns of phrase, but as for a takeaway, well I honestly got mostly fatigue.

have you read
Naked Lunch by William Buroughs

the book is not like the movie, it's genuinely obscene

"So we start from New Orleans past iridescent lakes and orange gas flares and swamps and garbage heaps; alligators crawling around in broken bottles and tin cans; neon arabesques of motels. Pimps scream obscenities at passing cars form islands of rubbish. New Orleans is a dead museum." - William Burroughs

oh and whoever recomended Screw the Roses send me the Thorns ; skip ahead to the the maiden voyage of the Rocketship Molly(sp)? for an excellent description of the appeal of S&M and subspace.
 

Mulebear

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I enjoyed Spook by Mary Roach, but her book Stiff[SIZE=-1]: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers[/SIZE] was a lot better. I highly recommend it.

I am currently reading Jar City by[SIZE=-1] Arnaldur Indridason, Shadow Divers by Robert Kurson, and God Is Not Great by Christopher Hitchens. (Yes, I'm one of those folks who reads several books at once.)

Jar City is a mystery novel about a murder in Reykjavik. I'm about 75 pages into it and thoroughly enjoying the characters.

Shadow Divers is about the discovery of an unknown U Boat that sunk off the shore of New Jersey and the two deep sea wreck divers who pushed the limits of nearly everything in their lives to identify the lost submarine. I'm about half-way through this one.

I'm currently on the fifth chapter of God Is Not Great. Irascible, grumpy, mean, arrogant, intolerant... These are just a few of the words used to discribe Mr. Hitchens. And yet... He is always engaging, entertaing, and never dull. He has taken aim at religion and is using a howitzer to blast it apart. When I'm finished I will place it next to my copy of Richard Dawkin's God Delusion and Sam Harris' The End Of Faith.

Other recent books I have enjoyed.

Crack In The Edge Of The World by Simon Winchester
Crashing Through by Robert Kurson
The Hot Zone by Richard Preston
The Devil In The White City by Erik Larson
[/SIZE]The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time by Mark Haddon

[SIZE=-1]I also recommend reading anything by Bill Bryson or David Sedaris and then buying the same books on CD so you can enjoy them again while driving about in your car. The Sedaris books on CD are even better than the books themselves.

My partner is currently reading the [/SIZE]No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency series by Alexander McCall Smith. He is on the third book at an average rate of 1 book per 2 days, yet he claims that he is "going slow" as to savor each story. Going slow?
 

snoozan

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[SIZE=-1]
The Hot Zone by Richard Preston
[/SIZE]

This was really good, and if you liked it, try The Coming Plague by Laurie Garrett. It's another book about newly emerging infectious diseases and it's as scary as it is captivating.

I can't believe I forgot And the Band Played On by Randy Shilts. It's a chronicle of the AIDS epidemic as it was discovered in the US and the political, social, and personal effects it had. It's big and long, but worth the read.

My Own Country
by Abraham Verghese is a personal account of the early years of the AIDS epidemic in a small town in Tennessee. It's very interesting because it's from the perspective of the only doctor in the area treating AIDS cases and it examines the epidemic from one of the places where "it couldn't happen."
 

taven

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I enjoyed Spook by Mary Roach, but her book Stiff[SIZE=-1]: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers[/SIZE] was a lot better. I highly recommend it.

I am currently reading Jar City by[SIZE=-1] Arnaldur Indridason, Shadow Divers by Robert Kurson, and God Is Not Great by Christopher Hitchens. (Yes, I'm one of those folks who reads several books at once.)[/SIZE]

[SIZE=-1]Jar City is a mystery novel about a murder in Reykjavik. I'm about 75 pages into it and thoroughly enjoying the characters.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=-1]Shadow Divers is about the discovery of an unknown U Boat that sunk off the shore of New Jersey and the two deep sea wreck divers who pushed the limits of nearly everything in their lives to identify the lost submarine. I'm about half-way through this one.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=-1]I'm currently on the fifth chapter of God Is Not Great. Irascible, grumpy, mean, arrogant, intolerant... These are just a few of the words used to discribe Mr. Hitchens. And yet... He is always engaging, entertaing, and never dull. He has taken aim at religion and is using a howitzer to blast it apart. When I'm finished I will place it next to my copy of Richard Dawkin's God Delusion and Sam Harris' The End Of Faith.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=-1]Other recent books I have enjoyed.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=-1]Crack In The Edge Of The World by Simon Winchester[/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1]Crashing Through by Robert Kurson[/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1]The Hot Zone by Richard Preston[/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1]The Devil In The White City by Erik Larson[/SIZE]
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time by Mark Haddon

[SIZE=-1]I also recommend reading anything by Bill Bryson or David Sedaris and then buying the same books on CD so you can enjoy them again while driving about in your car. The Sedaris books on CD are even better than the books themselves.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=-1]My partner is currently reading the [/SIZE]No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency series by Alexander McCall Smith. He is on the third book at an average rate of 1 book per 2 days, yet he claims that he is "going slow" as to savor each story. Going slow?

Absolutely impressed with Indridason's writing. Jar City is one of the best books I've read in a long time. Also am impressed with Philp Kerr's Berlin Noir and A Philosophical Investigation. Beloved Son by Jay Quinn was another impressive recent read. There are so many books and so little time...even at one a day, I'll never get to them all.
 

NCbear

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If you want to read a recent book by someone who has a truly awe-inspiring simple, stark, but thrilling style, read The Family Heart: A Memoir of When Our Son Came Out, by Robb Forman Dew.

Every time I open it and read a few sentences, her style blows me away again. It's like that phrase in Les Miserables: "stripped to the bone in a moment of breathless delight." That's how she writes, to me. Like lightning in a dark room. Sudden, sharp, breathtaking.

NCbear (who cannot express in words how much he admires the resonances and multiple meanings inherent in prose written by someone who has a poetic sensibility -- who has the gift of packing so much meaning into so few syllables)
 

hawkgirl

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One of my favorite books is The Celestine Prophesy, by James Reddfield. I like all the others is that series but that way definitly my fav.
 

prince_will

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ooh, books! i'm so in.

some of my favorite books are

The World According to Garp - John Irving
A Widow for One Year - John Irving
Survivor - Chuck Palahniuk
Flesh and Blood - Michael Cunningham
Carrie - Stephen King
The Rules of Attraction - Bret Easton Ellis
Angela's Ashes - Frank McCourt
A Farewell To Arms (purely for the ending) - Ernest Hemingway
I read lots of novels, so that dominates my list. lol...well, i just read alot, period. i'm never no currently in the process of finishing a book.
 

stretcher74

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I enjoyed Spook by Mary Roach, but her book Stiff[SIZE=-1]: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers[/SIZE] was a lot better. I highly recommend it.

I am currently reading Jar City by[SIZE=-1] Arnaldur Indridason, Shadow Divers by Robert Kurson, and God Is Not Great by Christopher Hitchens. (Yes, I'm one of those folks who reads several books at once.)[/SIZE]

[SIZE=-1]Jar City is a mystery novel about a murder in Reykjavik. I'm about 75 pages into it and thoroughly enjoying the characters.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=-1]Shadow Divers is about the discovery of an unknown U Boat that sunk off the shore of New Jersey and the two deep sea wreck divers who pushed the limits of nearly everything in their lives to identify the lost submarine. I'm about half-way through this one.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=-1]I'm currently on the fifth chapter of God Is Not Great. Irascible, grumpy, mean, arrogant, intolerant... These are just a few of the words used to discribe Mr. Hitchens. And yet... He is always engaging, entertaing, and never dull. He has taken aim at religion and is using a howitzer to blast it apart. When I'm finished I will place it next to my copy of Richard Dawkin's God Delusion and Sam Harris' The End Of Faith.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=-1]Other recent books I have enjoyed.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=-1]Crack In The Edge Of The World by Simon Winchester[/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1]Crashing Through by Robert Kurson[/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1]The Hot Zone by Richard Preston[/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1]The Devil In The White City by Erik Larson[/SIZE]
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time by Mark Haddon

[SIZE=-1]I also recommend reading anything by Bill Bryson or David Sedaris and then buying the same books on CD so you can enjoy them again while driving about in your car. The Sedaris books on CD are even better than the books themselves.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=-1]My partner is currently reading the [/SIZE]No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency series by Alexander McCall Smith. He is on the third book at an average rate of 1 book per 2 days, yet he claims that he is "going slow" as to savor each story. Going slow?

I have Dawkins' "God Delusion" waiting to be read, but I'm wondering if he's a better science that political/social writer. Somebody please let me know if Christopher Hitchens book on the same subject is worth reading. I do love when he appears on television or gives interviews, he really seems to lay into the holy-rollers and rabid jesusfreaks with some really delightful barbs. He does appear to be quite frequently -drunk. Having to argue with the Pat Robertsons of this world might drive me to drink also.
 

stretcher74

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I also enjoy biographies about famous business leaders and inventors. The setbacks are as interesting as the successes.

Fred Smith, Federal Express

Chester Carlson, Inventor of the Xerox Process

etc.
 

sdg475

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I'm currently reading a few books:

-The Story of Architecture (great explanation of styles and architects even if you have no previous information)

-A boring statics book (physics with out motion focusing on equilibriums)

-The Baron In The Trees, by Italo Calvino (entertaining approach to questioning the individual's role in society)

After I finish these I want to finally read Gilgamesh, which has been sitting on the shelf for two years.
 

braumeister

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I'm currently reading an anthology of science fiction short stories called "The Last Man on Earth", editted by Isaac Asimov. All the short stories have something to do with the life of the last man on earth, as the title indicates. Some are good, some are not so good. How the last man became the last man varies for each story. In one, there's a problem with a time machine. Another is about the downside of being the only immortal person (you outlive everyone else)., etc. I'm not sure it is in print anymore, a relative gave me it.

My favorite books are Tolkien's Lord of the Rings series, and Robert Heinlein's The Moon is a Harsh Mistress and Time Enough for Love.
 
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nudeyorker

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Ok...last night I got invited to a Book party at one of the better known magazines...Long story short...
It was a preview for Catherine Duneuve's new book"Close Up and Personal" The Private Diaries Of Catherine Deneuve
I stayed up all night reading it!
It's riveting, interesting and overall tres charment!
It goes on sale September 12th