Posted on 02/24/2005 6:11:45 PM PST by Tanniker Smith
Welcome to the Free Republic Book Club.
It was suggested a couple of days ago, in the FReeper's Book Rockets Up Amazon After Ingraham Show! thread (somewhere toward the end) that it would be great if there FR Book Club. Somehow, I think I got nominated to start one. I don't really know how to do that other than just to go ahead and do it. So I am -- please, feel free to point out mistakes, or point out how to make a "ping" list for folks that want to be a part of this.
Anyway, if there are no complaints, I think it would be better to have a Book Club rather than a Conservative Book Club (or a Republican Book Club or a Libertarian Book Club, etc). Yes, let's focus on the bounty of conservative books that we didn't have even a dozen years ago, but if anyone wants to occasionally talk about a mystery or SF book, it won't be off topic (unless The Powers That Be decide that it is, at least at FR). I don't know about anyone else, but the majority of my reading is composed of other stuff, as can be seen on this thread: Books Read in 2004 (Read Any Good Books Lately?)
Other than that, I have only one ground rule: judge (or slam) the books themselves, not the authors. The latter is way too easy, and beside the point. Likewise, I know the opinions folks have of Sean Hannity and Bill O'Reilly, but please separate the books from the people, particularly if you haven't read them.
So what should we discuss first?
I don't read "conservative" literature - seems kind of self-limiting. I read to understand.
so...
To understand Islam:
the Koran - Mohammed
Understanding the Hadith (the sacred traditions of Islam) - Ram Swarup
The Sword of the Prophet - Sergei Trifkovic
To understand modern (and upcoming) warfare and international conflicts:
Carnage and Culture - Victor Davis Hanson
The Art of War - Sun Tsu
The Book of Five Rings - Miyamoto Musashi
(yes, I tend to believe we shall be at war, in one form or another, with China in the next few decades... and that we already ARE to some extent)
To understand America:
The US Constitution
The Federalist Papers
Hoffer's "The True Believer" should be required reading.
how does it compare with his "Blood Meridian"?
SIR WALTER RALEIGH
-Raleigh Trevelyan
I've seen that in the library. Did you like it? I have Raleigh Trevelyan's family memoir, "The Golden Oriole."
Well, The Border Triology are tales of damnation and redemption, freedom, individualism, and love. Blood Meridien I guess is the same but the author actually puts in a devil figure and the brutality is more shocking - apparently the book is based on historical events, too. But I've never read anything like this guy McCarthy, for beauty of language and for moral power. Better than the ancient Greeks.
JMHO.
The Judge is one of the most awfully and horribly compelling characters I have ever encountered in liturature.
"litUrature"???
need... more... beer
Did you also take him as a representation of Satan, of evil in the world? Just feeling my way here - I'm no expert,but that's how it seemed. And the Kid - his life and experiences are so awful, but he just survives, doesn't seem to learn anything or change - was that meant to be redemptive power? Or is our McCarthy getting a little old and twisted?
Please add me to the "ping list".
And my book, Germs of War, to the list to be read (more in my profile)
Thanks
Previously, I had read Ann Coulter's How to talk to a Liberal and found it entertaining. I love Ann's thoughts on things. The book is mostly a collection of her columns, but they are great columns. This book isn't one of those foundational books that all conservatives should read in order to understand the movement. However, it's a fun read.
I have also read Michelle Malkin's Invasion within the past year. I think she makes a few mistakes, but I agree that the immigration situation must be addressed. I think she does a good job of presenting her case without just listing outrages and trying to provoke an emotional response.
J.C. Watts' What Color is a Conservative was a pretty good book as well. It's mostly biography, and he's had an interesting life. Again, it's not one of those foundational books for the conservative movement. It's also not obviously a campaign biography designed to build support for some future run for office.
Others getting an honorable mention for the past roughly year have been Founding Brothers which received a bit of press when it came out and Lee, a one-volume condensation of Douglass Southall Freeman's four-volume biography of Robert E. Lee.
I'm currently reading Benjamin Franklin's autobiography as well as reading some modern mystery stuff for fun sometimes.
Bill
Great idea. Give yourself an attaboy.
" please, feel free to point out mistakes,"
First off that shirt just doesn't go with those pants. :-)
"point out how to make a "ping" list for folks that want to be a part of this."
I had a campaign finance reform ping list, what I did is send myself an E-mail with the screen names on it. and saved it in a seperate folder. Whenever I had a new name I'd copy and paste the updated list in a new E-mail.
TS
At the risk of repeating titles others have said
(non-Fiction)
"The Case For Democracy"
Natan Sharansky
"The Universal Hunger For Liberty"
Michael Novak
"Occidentalism"
The West in the eyes of it's enemies
Ian Burma & Avishai (note this is a very small densely packed book)
"In The Red Zone"
Steven Vincent
(History...etc)
"Gorgon"
paleontology, obsession, and the greatest catastrophe in the history of the world
Peter D Ward
"The Invasion of Europe by the Barbarians
J.B. Bury
"Barbarians and Romans"
Justine D R Pehrson.
(Fiction)
"The Fabulous Small Jews"
Joseph Epstein
ANYTHING by Tim Powers, or S M Stirling
The problem with books like, Let Freedom Ring, How to talk to a Liberal...etc is they are preaching to the choir. Not that there's anything really wrong with that but so often they end up being a litany of what's wrong, why are we in this handbasket and where are we going kind of thing, but short on what to do about it.
Thanks.
I agree.
Sign me up too, please! I think it would be great to have freepers offering brief reviews or points of discussion from recently read works, which could be freeflowing or organized. I don't know how much organization freepers would stand for though!
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