What Are You Reading Now? - My Quarterly Inquiry

7/03/08 | MplsSteve

[MplsSteve]

OK everyone, it's time for my quarterly "What Are You Reading Now?" thread.

I like finding out what Freepers are reading lately. It can be anything...a technical journal, a trashy pulp novel, an old classic...in short, anything!

Please do not defile this thread by posting "I'm Reading This Thread". It became very unfunny a long time ago.

I'll start. I'm close to finishing "The Last Valley" by Martin Windrow. It's about the siege/battle of Dien Bien Phu in 1954.

Well, what are you reading now?!

[HuntsvilleTxVeteran]

Just finished William W. Johnstone’s “Honor Of The
Mountain Man”.
It seems to be a story of “The Outlaw Josey Wells” after
he went to Mexico and remarried”
The character's name is changed to “Joey Wells”.

[alarm rider]

“The Rising Tide” by Jeff Shaara.

A novel of WWII.

I would recommend it to anyone.

[pinkpanther111]

[retrokitten]

"Monster of Florence" - Douglas Preston.

I just finished listening to that one on audiobook. LOVED IT! It reminded me of the Zodiac murders in the SF Bay area.

I also enjoy his Agent Pendergast books with Lincoln Child. "Still Life With Crows" is my favorite. They aren't exactly deep, but they are a fun read.

[mpackard]

Funny....my brother, who is a pastor, loved the Oath, too. I’ve had Monster on my shelf for 3 years but cant get into it, at all. Then recently I read “Monster House” (or something along those lines, written with another author)but it was almost secular and boring to me.

[Tammy8]

One of the things you learn reading her book is how far back the mess actually began, she was just carrying on a long tradition of justices that could pull things from thin air that fit their ideology and claim it was somehow in the Constitution or should have been. She shows you the pattern of cases that in sum weakened the Constitution over the years; of course to her they were great rulings, but she tells enough about them for you to get the picture clearly. That is why I am enjoying the book- it makes me angry, but does give insight to what has happened, and is still happening. I do recommend it.

[TruthShallSetYouFree]

I'm reading Has Anyone Seen My Reading Glasses? It's a very funny book, starting with the author's adventures growing up in The Bronx and working at Yankee Stadium, followed by his description of a successful career and an early retirement.

[Dr.Zoidberg]

Well since I’m kinda burned out on politics and need an escape, I’m reading the Jim Butcher Dresden Files series.

Just started book 3 Grave Peril.

[socal_parrot]

Currenlty reading...

Great book about the life of Capt. Henry Morgan, privateer turned pirate and how he terrorized Central America and the Spanish Main in the mid 1600s.

On deck...

[raynearhood]

The Devil in the White City:

I read that last year, and loved it. My wife could only get so far into it as the H.H.Holmes portion scared the crap out of her. I enjoyed reading about the planning of the Chicago World Fair so much that I could barely put the book down.

I learned a couple things, too. Example: The El in Chicago was the modern technology attraction of the 1893 World Fair. I never looked into it, but always assumed the Elevated Trains were built out of necessity, not to marvel!

[retrokitten]

Right now, I’m for once not reading anything, because I’m editing and re-editing (rinse and repeat) a story I am writing for a writing contest. Yes, pray for me. ;-)

BUT, my mom just gave me “Ann Rule’s True Crime Files- Smoke, Mirrors, and Murder.” So that is one deck and next up on audiobook (I get to listen while I work) is “Reading Lolita In Tehran.”

[Don W]

I just finished Hunters of Dune by Brian Herbert (Frank's son) and Kevin J. Anderson. In the middle of Les Schwab's autobiography. Re-reading Newt's To Renew America. I'll be heading off to the bookstore later this afternoon to try and find something new. Oh yeah, there's the Apocrypha (lost/missing books of the Bible). Reading makes it easy to see why many of them were left out. < BG >

[untenured]

Just finished "Gross National Happiness," by Arthur Brooks. Argues, with a lot of survey data, that true contentment comes not from equality of outcome but a belief in equality of opportunity, and not from money nearly as much as from engagement in voluntarism, church, etc. Pretty good; written for a general audience, and all the statistical work is relegated to the back.

Am currently reading "1491: New Revelations of America Before Columbus," about life in aboriginal America before Europeans got here. I am reading it for a book I am writing myself, and am not far enough into it to render a verdict yet.

I also just finished "A Splendid Exchange," William Bernstein's story of the history of commerce. A neat book, like his last ("The Birth of Plenty"), full of interesting anecdotes even as I don't quite buy many of his conclusions.

[Sender]

Just finished Michael Crichton's "State of Fear", now into a new translation of Sun Tzu's "Art of War" with comments by his contemporaries, next probably "The Shack" for some inspirational change of mood.

Bathroom: Shotgun News, Small Arms Review, ArcNews, the Schwan's catalog.

[agooga]

“The Wolves of Calla” Book 5 in the Dark Tower series by King. Finding it a little hard to get into. The first two books really held my interest, but I’m kind of limping through the series now.

[retrokitten]

Loved, loved, loved that book. I mainly picked it up for the parts about HH Holmes and figured I’d trudge through the parts about the fair. But the creation of the fair was fascinating!

His description of life at that time is so vivid that it blew me away. If it hadn’t happened so long ago, I would have sworn he had to be there experiencing the things first hand.

One thing that struck me was how the fair organizers wouldn’t allow Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show to be a part of the fair. So, they set up outside and made a boatload of money.

[Sender]

Oh, and partway through “The Way of a Ship” by Derek Lundy.

[brewer1516]

Night by Elie Wiesel.
Just wrapped up Life Expectancy by D. Koontz.

Maybe I should have switched the order. The Koontz book was more humor oriented.

I've seriously considered a moratorium on news (and yes, even FR) for a few months. I need to clense the spiritual palate. Any suggestions for uplifting, life-affirming reading anyone?

[Fractal Trader]

ping for later

[cdga5for4]

Two Wars by Nate Self
Lone Survivor
Jim Tressel’s The Winners Manual
Dead Heat by Joel Rosenberg