Posted on 03/09/2007 11:22:35 PM PST by Blind Eye Jones
"Dune by Frank Herbert. This has been mentioned several times, to my surprise. I just thought it was long."
I agree. The first book in the trilogy "Dune" was excellent. Perhaps others are referring to the final two books in the trilogy. Talk about a steep drop-off. Ugh!
I recall encountering it and wondering, "This is the most sensuous thing I have ever read-What's it DOING HERE?"
Yes, yes, "allegories of Christ's love for His Church", I know, nice try. I seriously doubt anyone who has read it will, at all levels, buy that.
I am not sure that we disagree.
Zen is among my top three all-time favorite books. (my screen name gives away my #1)
But Pirsig's convoluted exploration of Quality is, while brilliant, difficult to read.
Odd little book - either hated or loved.
"Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." - Manuel II Palelologus
It can also be a little bit hillarious as in one passage the lady (I think) gets so excited that her lover is coming that her bowels moved.
His thesis is impeccable, I am never certain if the writing style forces one to concentrate on the message or discourages the mind.
The Voynich Manuscript.
It may have helped that in my youth I did some commercial fishing on the Gulf of Mexico. Actually I sailed on what I am sure was the last sailing snapper boat that actually sailed. In the late 50s-early 60s there were still some Mobile schooners on the Gulf. They had sailed during WWII when there was no fuel but had their masts cut out of them after the war and ran with single 671s. The Peggy G still had the stubs- had just lost her topmasts- and the old engineer and the green kid-that's me- were swapping sea stories in the focsle because my uncle was a sailmaker in Sarasota and I had spent summers on his sailboats. Well, the engineer had sailed in the war and loved it. He finally said hey you up to it? we got sails up front! There were, indeed, a cut down main and a couple of jibs and we bent them on and sailed that boat to Campeche, 500 miles to Mexico, and then back. Made better time than that 671 was capable of. A couple of months later after I got back and off that boat she burned up in Escambia Bay in a fire caused by an evil insurance demon so that was the end of sailing snapper boats on the Gulf.
The entire five-volume set by Eric Voegelin, "Israel and Revelation" and the others.
I picked a copy with large type a few years ago and gave it another go. It may be the greatest book I've ever read.
I agree.
To quote the late science fiction novelist Keith Laumer:
"I didn't know you read Kant."
"Can't read, you mean."
(rim shot)
Cheers!
The Magic Mountain - by Mann
Tedious, boring and the end is in FRENCH!
The Unabridged Transcripts of Democratic Underground.
For sheer boredom-inducement, I'd say Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter. What utter rubbish.
DING DING DING DING DING DING DING DING DING DING!
ding ding
NO more calls, please.
We have a winner!
Cheers!
then I misunderstood you, sorry.
I found the "pursuit of quality" an interesting take on how one may choose to live a life, and how a single-minded pursuit of things unknowable can lead to madness. That I can identify a bit with this madness is why I re-read it periodically.
Also, it led to some very interesting debates with philosophy professors in college, usually ending with their anger as I tried to raise basic issues of thought and logic from ancient Greeks, while they were pushing Nietsche and the like.
I never got into much science fiction, but a few authors strike my fancy. I like Neal Stephenson's Crytonomicon and Snow Crash, but the Baroque Cycle lost me.
"He placed his hand by the hole of my door, and my bowels were moved for him". Indeed.
I was wondering if anyone would mention this book. It was on a list of the best 100 books of all time from World magazine a couple of years ago, so I tried it...ditto...I wanted to like it but could not get through it!
Rand is stunningly clear - she just says the same clear thing over and over again for a thousand pages. ;)
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