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What are you reading?

The Superior Man by David Deida

A self help book on how to be a better man (in a relationship). It's retarded sexist drivel. It's the New Age version of The Game. It's so retarded it makes me cringe and laugh all the way through. I recommend it. I had a blast reading it. When reading it I kept getting flashbacks of Arnold Schwarzhenegger saying "I'm going to pump you up".
 
Dinner with the Devil. Helen Macrae

Story of the Queen Vic. A women's hospital founded in 1896 when a group of female doctors asked each woman in Victoria to donate 1s in an attempt to remedy the lack of medical help available until then.

Interesting read, so far.
 
Do audiobooks count?

I've been listening to Stephen King's The Wind Through the Keyhole for the last couple of nights as I drift off to sleep.

For that purpose, it's excellent. But had I purchased it and used eye-labor to take it in, I'd probably think it was awful. It's a tack-on to the Gunslinger series, which was awesome, and it does have its moments, but its very linear. Maybe it reads better. I don't know. But what I do know is that it's doing an awesome job at putting me to sleep.
 
Eden by Stanislaw Lem.

Humans crash land on a planet called Eden and attempt to make contact with the residents.

Things don't go well.

I found it interesting, but not emotionally engaging. There is relatively little action, and at the end it's not clear what has been learned.
 
I have someone either here or in the film thread to thank for putting me onto Patrick O'Brian.

Fascinating stories, fascinating insights.
 
spikepipsqueak said:
I have someone either here or in the film thread to thank for putting me onto Patrick O'Brian.

Fascinating stories, fascinating insights.
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And, if you're into audiobooks, Patric Tull is an incredibly good reader.

Some of O'brian's books have two or three readers, so make sure you're ordering the version read by Tull.
 
Galileo's Middle Finger by Alice Dreger. An interesting and educational read thus far, discussing a clash between science and activism.
 
I'm still reading Michael Oren's excellent but very long biography of his time as Israeli Ambassador to the US. It reads like a good political thriller, only this is fact not fiction.
 
Started A strange Valley by Darrell Bain;

''A clerk working in the census bureau discovers a series of anomalies in the population of a small city located in the Ozark Mountains. Intrigued, the clerk continues to investigate. He finds that, on average, the population of the city and surrounding valley, are a little smarter, less religious, more thrifty, marry less, have a higher level of education, are more thrifty, marry less, have a higher level of education, are more sexually liberated, have fewer illnesses and many other positive traits. The city also refuses government money for schools and roads, has little crime and no sign of racial unrest. None of these factors would mean much taken alone, but together, they spell out a population that is distinctly skewed from the normal. Surprisingly, hardly anyone in the valley realizes that most of them are different from the average. They simply think they live in a good place among good people. Then the investigation starts... ''
 
I finally finished reading The Christian Delusion, and highly recommend it to anyone who gets into arguments with Evangelicals.

It is a series of essays by a variety of scholars that counter specific arguments commonly made by Christians, particularly Evangelicals. What is different about this is that in each case, the arguments are countered by a scholar from the relevant field for the argument, and is very thorough.

Bible scholarship and history are not exactly my strong suit, so I'll need to read it multiple times to really absorb everything. The last two chapters deal with two arguments very popular among Evangelicals right now. Chapter fourteen deals with the "atheism will turn you into a Nazi" argument, while chapter fifteen deals with "science comes from Christianity" arguments.

Yes, those arguments are so bad that one can easily debunk them without reading this stuff, but I was shocked to find out the details of exactly how bad these arguments are. I will definitely be bringing up Positive Christianity the next time some Christian tries to use that "Nazis were atheists" canard.
 
I picked up Howard Zinn's 'A People's History of the United States' again and got about forty pages deeper. I don't know if I'll slog through the entire thing because I get the narrative he's stringing through it, and I don't think I can dampen three months of my life with nothing but depressing facts. Incredible book that I'm glad is out there, but it's just too much.

Would be interested in reading some criticisms of the work.
 
I loved Michael Oren's biop so much I'm now reading his very excellent " 6 Days Of War" About the 1967 six days war. The events that led up to it, the intrigue and disjointed Arab nations. I'm only 5% in, but so far I love it.
 
23 Things They Don't Tell You About Capitalism, by Ha-Joon Chang.

Second time around for me on this one. I'm listening to it on audiobook, and I'll need to buy a digital copy so that I can read it slowly and take notes.
 
A History of Rome, based on a TV series I think, with a preface by Mary Beard. It takes key persons and events and is a damn sight easier read than Gibbon with whom I am definitely declining.
 
The Spartan Way - Nic Fields.

At over 600 pages, quite a thorough account of the Peloponnesian War and the rise and fall of Sparta as the military superpower of its time..
 
Started reading The Greatship by Robert Reed....so far its shaping up to be top notch Science Fiction.

''Since the beginning of the universe, the giant starship wandered the emptiest reaches of space, without crew or course, much less any clear purpose. But humans found the relic outside the Milky Way, and after taking possession, they named their prize the Great Ship and embarked on a bold voyage through the galaxy’s civilized hearts.''
 
Draconis said:
Recently I read "Jingo" by Terry Pratchett. Apparently it is an entry point into his world. Sorry but I found it too juvenile for me. Won't be reading any more.
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Didn't like Jingo at all, but I love Terry Pratchett. Maybe try The Witches Abroad.
 
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