The Future of Freedom, Illiberal Democracy at Home and Abroad By Fareed Zakaria (ISBN0-393-04764-4) andI have slected these two relatively new books to begin with to show that the classics of conservatism aren't the only things worth reading. These two are great bookends to looking at conservative principles and how they apply to the rest of the world. The reflection on our own culture and government are thereby subtle reflections that any reader can profit from, not just those of us who think on that subject every day. Has anyone else come across them?The Mystery of Capital, Why Capitalism Triumphs in the West and Fails Everywhere Else by Hernando De Soto (ISBN-0-46501614-6)
Standing Firm by Dan Quayle.
I recommend this to go back and read, even if you have not done so. Quayle mis-read some people, and unfortunately the record is there in black and white. I supported Quayle before he withdrew from the presidential race, and I have no axe to grind. This is an instructive book on how one's opinion of leaders is shaped by events.
Barbara Bush: A Memoir by Barbara Bush.
This is an easy read, but it has some interesting detail, and should be read in preparation for Reflections, by Barbara Bush, which is coming out in October. Reflections will cover the time since they left the White House until their son was elected. Coincidentally, those years are the Clinton years, and advance word is that Mrs. Bush is pulling no punches. Heheheh.
Just got done reading The TAlisman by Stephen King and Peter Straub. I recently "discovered" King novels, especially all that are connected to The Dark Tower series. Talisman was a bit slow and had little to do with The Dark Tower, however I am told the sequel, Black House has more DT info...
Currently I reading Villa Incognito by Tom Robbins...
Waiting not so patiently for the Next Harry Potter....
Slander by Ann Coluter. Love her wit! She can pack more into a sentence than most can put into an entire chapter. Quite enjoyable reading.
One of my all time favorites is the 12 volume set "Brann and the Iconoclast". The Iconoclast was a newspaper out of Waco Texas in the late 1800s. Brann was the writer/editor. The writing is wonderful and gives a peek into politics and business of America and worldwide. Brann's subscription base was over 10,000 internationally. As a side line but woven thoughout the articles of the newspaper was Brann's ongoing disagreement with some of the powers at Baylor University. He stood up for the honor of a young girl, 14 years old(from Brazil I believe it was). She was brought from her home by missionaries with the promise to her mother of her being educated and taught to become a missionary. Instead she was put to work in the kitchen where she caught the eye of a young man who shall we say did not hesitate to make his advances. When she became pregnant their treatment of her was beyond disgraceful. Brann wanted justice for the girl whose reputation and life had been terribly ruined and never hesitated in calling out the guilty party in his writing. Needless to say there were those at Baylor who insisted he was wrong and their desire for his silence on this issue clouded their ability to think. This dispute grew so heated at one point Brann was kidnapped by some of the students. Another time an attempt to tar and feather him failed when one of the young men left the bucket of tar under a bridge. Needless to say Brann spared no words describing these adventures.
After loosing his life in a gunfight in the streets of Waco regarding this same Baylor situation his wife had the newspaper printed and bound in book form which makes up the 12 volumes.
For a real view and a taste of the flavor of the West this is a great read.
Diplomacy by Henry Kissinger
The Prize by Daniel Yergin
I mentioned a couple of nonfiction books on the other thread, but I'll mention some fiction here. I enjoy the writing of Dean Koontz a great deal. I don't know what his poitical views are, but I think he is generally very respectful towards the conservative view. I like the fact that when he talks about history's all-time killers, he mentions Stalin in the same sentence with Hitler. I think it's good to remind people of the evils of communism. I review one of the more political of his books at Book Review: Dark Rivers of the Heart.
I'll mention others as I think of them.
This wasn't just a huge undertaking for the city of Chicago, but for the entire United States. There was a worlds fair in Paris a few years before and the French thought that this was the end all be all of worlds fairs and that the US could never have one as brilliant. Stupid French.
The story of the serial killer is equally as interesting. He operated a house of horrors just down the street from the fair. It's a very bizarre story. People around him just kept disappearing and he would just weave these stories that were believable enough to keep people from calling the police.