Just picked up Does American Democracy Still Work? by Alan Wolfe today.

CP

You may find that you have more in common with Pat Buchanan than you would have expected.

I am reading Necessary Illusions by Noam Chomsky. Chomsky is enlightening, ususally depressing but always thought provoking. He makes me think long after I set the book down.

Currently enjoying A Confederacy of Dunces by John Kennedy Toole. An excellent read.

Among other things, I'm now pretty well into Blood & Oil: Memoirs of a Persian Prince and am somewhere around the beginning of WWII.

It's something like a highly personalized account of Iranian history and it'is certainly good going so far.

Been on a Sci-fi tip lately. Just finished the Hyperion Canticle and have started Dune.

I just finished up The Art of Talk. I've always been a fan of Bell's so it was interesting to read his autobiography, albeit a bit dated at this point.

Over my lunches last week, I indulged myself with a few short selections from Cyan. Sitting near the Savannah River is a perfect setting for reading a few scary stories. Faulkner has a new fan. I'm going to have to seek out more. I'll take suggestions if anyone has any.

Ugh- more College required reading- some of it good, some of it bad- Thucydides on the Peleponisian war(s), Plato's republic and Machivelli's "The Prince". Not great reading, but informative- especially when you realize that Thucydides' observations in ancient hellas were relevent today as well.

Those are all interesting reading. The ancient Greek historians still make for compelling reading.

Plato's Republic (despite its name) is as scary a depiction of fascism as you are likely to find.

The Prince is still a remarkable account of power and its uses.

As for me:


Brightness Falls From the Air by "James Tiptree, Jr." (Alice Sheldon) (1985)

Reading this novel and knowing something about the woman who called herself "James Tiptree, Jr." is a strange experience. It's hard to ignore the fact that she fooled everybody into thinking she was male, with a distinctly "masculine" style of writing; it's also hard to ignore the fact that, when her elderly husband went blind and became helpless, she killed him with a shotgun and then killed herself.

Brightness Falls From the Air takes place in the far future, on a distant planet. Before the story takes place, a nearby star was destroyed in a war, killing all the inhabitants of its system. The light from that explosion is about to reach the planet, creating a spectacular light show. The planet is inhabited by fairy-like aliens, who were formerly tortured by humans in order to produce a drug from their bodies. A pair of humans have been assigned to the planet to act as guardians of the aliens. They will also serve as hosts to a small number of tourists who have come to see the light show.

The first part of the novel reads like a sophisticated Star Trek novel, making use of familiar science fiction themes. The second half is full of violence, suffering, and death. One can't help seeing the author's own suicide reflected in this, her second and last novel. Although there is a "happy ending" of sorts, for some of the characters, this is a very sad book.

With their rewards card, Borders is offering some of the deepest price cuts I've seen. Earlier this week I picked up Charles Frazier's Thirteen Moons and yesterday purchased John Grisham's The Innocent Man - both 46% off.

This is Grisham's first nonfiction work. It is about a former baseball player, Ron Williamson, who spent eleven years on Oklahoma's death row before he was exonerated through DNA evidence.

http://www.innocenceproject.org/case/displ...ofile.php?id=59

I am about half way through the second chapter. I enjoyed reading Grisham in A Time to Kill, The Chamber, and A Painted House, but not so much in the thrillers like The Firm. I certainly didn't like the near fantasy, The Runaway Jury.

Grisham is at his best when writing about his native South. His narrative about rural Oklahoma is colorful, vivid, seems - based on what I've seen of rural Texas and a smattering of Oklahoma - accurate.

This book and the work of the Innocence Project only add to my conviction that the death penalty is a relic that needs to go.

Reviews on Amazon.com are mixed, but I'll go with the positive side.

http://www.amazon.com/o/ASIN/0385517238/re...4953056-6598307

Currently enjoying Bob Woodward's Bush's War. A great account of how the military involvement in Afghanistan was planned after 911. Also interesting to note who liked or didn't like one another.

REQUIRED READING: I've just finished Nicholas Lemann's Redemption: The Last Battle of the Civil War, which is the most enlightening and depressing book on American history that I've read in ages. It deals primarily with the white terrorists who thwarted free elections in Mississippi in 1875, but in a larger sense it treats the whole failure of Reconstruction and the sham that the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments were until late in the 20th century. The impact that the events of the mid-1870s had on the entire country is still being felt today and Lehmann's history is a well-deserved slap in the face for anyone who doubts that racism is the only issue in American history and politics. At about 200 pages, it is a fairly quick read - and I can't recommend it highly enough. I really can't.

To lighten things up a bit, I've just started A. J. Jacobs' The Know-It-All: One Man's Humble Quest to Become the Smartest Person in the World. Jacobs, an editor at Esquire magazine, spent over a year reading all thirty-two volumes of the Encyclopedia Britannica. The book is based on both the often grotesque bits of information he came across and the impact that the experience had on his family, friends, and career. In addition to being a quirky digest of encyclopedic trivia, it's also an amusing meditation on the nature of knowledge and an entertaining memoir. I'm only up to "D" so far, but if it continues as it's started, it'll prove to be a very worthy diversion.

So this recommendation is several months out of date... but I'll post it anyways

I just re-read a textbook from my undergraduate studies to help a friend with a paper (yes... I am that bored), and I'd like to recommend it to lederuvdapac.

The name is Neorealism and its Critics, Robert Keohane ed. As for me, recently, I just read something called The Faerie Queen. It's not for everyone. In fact, I found it kind of goofy considering it's somewhere in the pantheon of english prose. It's a good read if you're interested in early english narratives or, like me, you've read a bunch of fantasy stories and you find them uninspired or unoriginal.

My newest book has no real political slant, but is probably one of the best doses of perspective that I've had in a while...

I just read "For One More Day" by Mitch Albom. It's a follow up to "Tuesdays with Morrie" really, and tugs on your heart strings in a story that revolves around a mother's love and reminds us that life is fleeting. It makes you wanna call your folks and make an attempt at being a better person...

As we're coming up to the holiday season, a nice tear-jerker might go well with a mug of hot chocolate.

Finding Noel by Richard Paul Evans is a current NYT best seller in fiction hardcover. I found it in the local public library. Evans uses a very easy style and is a master at getting emotional impact going with a minimum amount of prose.

The book is classified as women's literature, and I suppose it's due to the romance plot structure (boy meets girl, boy loses girl, boy gets girl in the end), but men will like this story too. It has solid male-oriented observations and themes, and as suggested, the protagonist is a young man (21-ish) who plays guitar and writes songs (big appeal to me) and knows something about auto mechanics. This is a family story, so no torrid love scenes and negligible violence in the plot or dialog. Emotional conflict is what this is about. People die, people fall in love, people come to understandings, people find Noel.

I put this one into the page-turner pile. It's like a popular song that has depth to it, something that is harder to create than a meaningful song that nobody likes. Comes in at 304 pages, so I estimate it to be around 74,000 words. That's on the light side of novel lengths (80,000-120,000 average range).

It's an easy, quick and satisfying read, like a mug of hot chocolate to set off the coldness of the season.

To switch gears for a moment... has anyone read "Darkly Dreaming Dexter"? I've become an instant fan of the new show "Dexter" and am giving the book a serious look.

No, but the flap copy got on Miss Snark's blog, date of 10.23.2006. Have to look for it at the library tomorrow. If the devine MS thinks it's cool, I'll read it.

I'm nearly halfway into Tempting Faith: An Inside Story of Political Seduction by David Kuo, a former insider of the conservative Christian movements responsible for putting GWB and many of the Republicans currently in Congress. Kuo worked for Bill Bennett for years and worked with and for other religious conservatives before he was hired by then Governor George W. Bush. I'm at the place where he is writing speeches for GWB before the 2000 presidential campaign, so I'll be able to talk about it more in a few days when I'm further along in the story.

I am also reading Eat Right For Your Type by Dr. Peter J. D'Adamo with Catherine Whitney. These are four diets based on blood type, predicated on the belief that Type O's, the "Old", are from the time when humankind was basically hunter/gatherer. Type A is "Agrarian", type B is "Nomadic", and type AB is "the Enigma" when it comes to nutritional choices. Type O's should, according to this book, consume more animal protein whereas Type A's should be vegetarians ( ). Type B's appear to be more disease resistant than the types previously mentioned, and Type AB is the newest and most adaptable blood type when it comes to diet. I must say that I like animal proteins entirely too much for someone who should be a vegetarian. It is interesting to me that some foods that I naturally disliked as a child (like cottage cheese) and for which I had to acquire a taste were actually foods that I shouldn't be eating according to this book!

I'm enjoying Lisey's Story by Stephen King.

Velocity by Dean Koontz (2005 Bantam hardcover)

I've enjoyed earlier Koontz work as a casual reader, having picked up a paperback novel here and there when the mood hit. Now, as a critical reader looking for good writing examples, I know why I like the work.

The two things that Koontz does very well are plot and description. The 400 pages of this book move quickly into a series of murders committed by a mysterious and brilliantly twisted killer. The protagonist has his own past to deal with and a current fiance who is in a deep coma and on a feeding tube. There isn't a page that goes by where the reader isn't concerned for the protagonist, despite his lack of heroic qualities.

Pulling this off is a manifestation of masterful writing. I also like the short paragraph journalism style that Koontz uses, which might be in line with the idea of velocity (rapid plot movement) for this particular novel.

Some things are a bit transparent. The ethical dilemma of keeping a loved one on a feeding tube indefinitely harkens back to the Shiavo controversy that kicked up a few years back. Vicious serial killers have been all over the media, so that part of the concept is easily traced back. Koontz uses the technique of withholding information to build mystery and suspense, something I personally find a little annoying but other readers probably forgive.

My forgiveness has worn thin lately. If a story doesn't engage me within the first fifty or so pages, I drop it. There are all kinds of excellent books to enjoy, so why stick with a dog? Sometimes the first page turns me off, and when selecting books to take home from the library, that's one of the initial considerations.

Yet I keep reading this book and enjoying it. That's really what it's all about when it comes to commercial fiction. Oh, and I am picking up interesting writing tricks, so add learning something to the entertainment value.

I see you are wrestling through some ancient literature. I have both read Thucydides and Plato too. I must admit that Plato's De Republica is pretty dry stuff to read. I really liked Thucydides, he is considered the first 'objective' historian and his book is very informative indeed. But if you really want to read a nice book written in ancient times you have to pick up Herodotus' 'Historia'. He is considered the first real history writer and his book is full of funny and remarkable anecdotes from foreign countries and cultures. It is a much better read than Plato and Thucydides together.

At this moment I am reading Farseer trilogy written by Robin Hobb. I love reading phantasy books, I am big fan of the Lord of the Ring trilogy. It is just nice to leave the normal world and its problems behind you and leap into a wonderfull and amazing fictional world where everything is possible.

I thought I might give this thread a bit of a bump. I'm not quite up for a Book Review - especially as I've only read the first three chapters - but I have to put in any early recommendation for Chris Rodda's Liars For Jesus: The Religious Right's Alternate Version of American History Vol. 1. I've skimmed through another few chapters and pursued a couple of index entries and it looks like it's going to hold up.

First - and possibly foremost - it's the only book I know of inspired by and initially written for those who participate in political discussion forums. Rodda started her writing career by posting a casual response in an AOL message board on the Ten Commandments monument in the Alabama courthouse and - well, most people here know where that sort of thing can lead.

The author has only tackled one subject from one point of view, but it is a great - probably the definitive - resource on that topic: the Establishment Clause and the "wall of separation" between church and state. Rodda has a clear bias - for the truth, I'd say - but she has (literal) volumes of well-documented foundation for her position. She has become an authority on the subject and presents strong, clear arguments from the historical record and primary source documents concerning the political and spiritual truth about the Founding Fathers. Her research is exhaustive - and is not confined to Googling. She apparently loves poring over old hand-written manuscripts - treaties, state constitutions, ordinances, letters - and has spent more time with the Congressional Record and Journals of the Continental Congress than I would've thought possible. It's the sort of book I would write if I could indulge in political debate full-time.

In short, if you are arguing against the separation of church and state - or even from the viewpoint that the United States is a "Christan nation" - do not tangle with Chris Rodda. She gives new meaning to the word "debunk". On the other hand, if you are aware of America's real history and want the primary source quotes to back you up, she is going to be an indispensible resource. And she generously acknowledges this. The book is self-published and the copyright page includes this note:

Not too many rights reserved. The use of a reasonable amount of this book is fine with me, provided that it is used for the purpose of correcting the historical myths and lies of the religious right - wherever they may be lurking or may appear. By a reasonable amount, I mean as much as is necessary to thoroughly and successfully disprove a particular lie or list of lies, whether that is one paragraph or ten pages. In other words, use what you need, but don't go copying entire chapters onto your website or anything.

The book is also unique in that its web site has a Footnote Archive in which you can view and verify the sources cited in the book. You won't see an Ann Coulter doing that. For any sources that are unavailable online, she has scanned the pages in question and posted them on the book site. Cool.

Even better, regardless of one's position on the First Amendment, Rodda's research necessarily provides a lot of background material on quite a few interesting episodes of our early history - and a lot of insight into some of the key players, especially Madison and Jefferson, as well as Franklin, Washington, Adams, and others. Details of territory acquisition, early foreign policy machinations, Native American relations, public education, and so on are woven into her arguments and there's a lot of information on the nature and status of theology at the time. I'm finding fascinating and educational - and the fact that so much of it reads like an extended post to America's Debate gives it an edgy drive.

I must also confess that I'm finding the arguments themselves very satisfying. The title might sound a bit caustic, but after reading even a few pages of Ms. Rodda's research, one has to agree that, while direct, the epithet is dead accurate. There is no question that those re-writing American history from the perspective of the Christian right - David Barton, Tim LaHaye, William Federer, Gary DeMar (the cut 'n' paste gods of fundamentalist message boards - and staples of Christian home schooling curricula) - have knowingly and deliberately published absolute falsehoods and willfully spread abject misinformation, passing it off as "history" - or, worse, "the 'real' history". And, in the age of the internet, their lies have proliferated at an alarming rate - and have even begun to filter into our textbooks. They are not just liars, they are dangerous liars, in pursuit of a specific agenda - one that is antithetical to this country's ideals. It's exhilarating to see them demolished.

The only problem is that Rodda's research became so exhaustive, that she first had to split the book into two volumes - then three. And only Vol. 1 has been published so far (with what look like some of the juicier bits to come in Vol. 2). But Liars for Jesus promises to be one of the most authoritative texts ever published on the subject. I just hope the remaining volumes aren't too late.

I have to get back to reading it now.

Are any of you fans of the Russian Revolution or Civil War? How about the subsequent Stalinist purges? If so, Ive got the book for you. It's called Darkness at Noon.

The author is Arthur Koestler. It is fiction based on non-fiction. It takes place during the infamous Moscow trials of the late 1930's and the main character of the book, Nicholas Rubashov, is based on the real life political figure (and once close friend of Stalin) Nikolai Bukharin.

It's an exceptional read. You may have a hard time putting it down.

After I finish my third book by FA Hayek, "The Fatal Conceit" will begin the book I am sure many of us will be delving into, "The Center of the Storm" by George Tenet. I know that there have been a number of criticisms and talking points already given on the book, but I haven't paid attention to much of it hoping I would be able to make up my own mind. After that fun, I have a few books ready for reading including "Leviathan on the Right" by CATO Institute scholar Michael Tanner and "The Wal-Mart Revolution" by Richard Vedder and Wendell Cox. And MAYBE i will find the time to finish "Diplomacy" by Henry Kissinger. Been reading that for like a year now...

Diplomacy is brutal eh? Kissinger talks at about the same pace he speaks.

Polished off the new-ish Tolkien book "The Children of Hurin" about a week back. I knew the story, but it was interesting to read it properly spread out in a narrative. Worth a read if you're a fan of epics or pre-modern narratives, but be warned, it's dark. Like half of the characters commit suicide dark.

C. S. Lewis hasn't been an author I've gravitated toward, but thought I'd give him a whirl as a selection for a paid summary/analysis gig. I mean, someone who creates the Narnia (over 100 million copies printed) series and dies on the same day as John F. Kennedy is somebody who has to be, if nothing else, interesting. Turns out the guy is fascinating, smart, a great logician, somewhat warped from life experiences, yet still sane in a manner -- yeah, my kind of writer.

Wiki on C. S. Lewis

Oh, and Irish. What is it about the Irish that produces so many great writers? Or maybe it was just the time period. Eh, that's not important.

My selection is Mere Christianity, a collection of edited radio scripts from a program that Lewis did on Christianity. It consists of around 30 scripts that run about five pages each, fairly small bites, but Lewis packs a lot into these small spaces. Lewis converted from atheism to Christianity in his midlife, partly due to the influences of Tolkien, a Catholic and good friend. Lewis decided to become orthodox Anglican, the Church of England, the one that Henry VIII used to get his divorce. The scripts are arranged into four sub-books, all interesting, but the first seems to me to be the most important in that it lays out Christian thinking in a logical argument framework that philosophers use. The other sub-books build the structure of Christian thought upon the framework of the first sub-book.

As with any system of thought, the premise is all-important to the whole, and the leaps of faith in the foundation give rise to inevitable structures later on. The premise that Lewis starts with is that there exists a Law of Nature (he gives it several other names too) that exists outside of humans, and in fact behind the universe. Additionally and in parallel, humans have a dickens of a time following the Law of Nature.

Lewis makes three primary leaps of faith: God exists; there's only one God; Scripture is reliable authority. He brushes by them in somewhat slick ways, like a skilled salesperson, and then claims to not be selling Christianity. Uh, well, okay. Actions speak louder than words. Yah made some leaps of faith, so admit it. No? Okay, I need to read on to get my paycheck.

Normally I would have simply returned the book to the library, convinced that my initial feelings about Lewis were correct. But wanting to make some money is a great motivator to read things one would not normally read. What I've found is that my understanding on how Christians think has expanded beyond my old scope of dismissing the thoughts as not all that valid, to a deeper understanding of how the faith works. I get it now. I may not agree with it, being that I don't take the same leaps of faith, but I understand how the three primary leaps lead to certain conclusions.

Furthermore, the three leaps have to be done together. I see some of the problems with some current Christian thinking not described by Lewis, because he could not have described something that developed after his death, as not taking all three leaps, only one or two, and not leaping off the premise that Lewis proposes. Or leaping without any premise. Or leaping and jumping around like a pogo stick. Then there's just plain old muddy thinking.

It's actually refreshing to get one thinking person's explanation about what he believes and why. There's no Bible-thumping going on, only an occasional "it's this way because I say so," which really isn't all that bad. Everyone has to do that at some point in any logical argument. I also enjoy the humor of Lewis and his approachable style. Think I'd have liked this guy had I been one of his contemporaries. In all, Lewis was a writer who knew exactly what he was doing.

I am currently reading Bowling Alone by Robert Putnam. This book was on the bestseller list for awhile when it was first published, and Im reading it because I lugged the thing all the way down to Argentina with me. Im only about halfway done, but it's an interesting read on how American's have become less social overall, and how that may affect American society. The first half of the book is basically a bunch of stats that proves to us exactly how we are less social (ie, we're joining less clubs or formal organizations, we're less likely to hang out with our friends, less likely to join organized sports, etc. etc.). The idea is that all these formal and informal activities help society to accrue "social" capital: how much we trust each other. By not engaging in these activities less and less, we find it harder to relate and our society becomes less functional. So far it's interesting.

I'm not exactly proud to say this, but I've been reading some Korean children's books to help me on my vocabulary for the Korean language. Other than that, I sometimes read other things like my bicycle repair manual or the Choose Your Own Adventure books.

Wertz, while I make it a point not to read anything with footnotes during the summer months, I'd be curious to know whether Liars for Jesus tackles Organic Law, and how it's treated.

Back to summertime fare, I'm in the midst of Clemente: The Passion and Grace of Baseball's Last Hero. It's a wonderful read, and a poignant reminder of the racial issues that baseball went through in the 50's. Especially timely given the 60th anniversary of Jackie Robinson integrating the majors in April of '47. Clemente, as a black Puerto Rican, had to deal with segregated housing in Florida Spring Training, reporters quoting him phonetically, all sorts of challenges. And he was truly a hero to many, including me. Plus the baseball writing about Pittsburg in the 60's is pretty well done, giving you a sense of the time.

Highly recommended, and I believe it's coming out in paperback right about now.

Thanks for this post, UJ, though it was several months ago...damn, life goes by fast. Without this reference, I would have never looked at the book (or even heard of it). But, it seemed like a genre I would be interested in (appreciation for dark humor and weirdness, that's me ).

I kept the name in the back of my cranium and checked the book out a couple of weeks ago. I read it in a day, then checked out the next (Dearly Devoted Dexter) and enjoyed it very much also. I have the next book on my wish list....not sure it's out yet. When the show comes out on Netflix I will definitely watch it. I think placing the actor who played David in 'Six Feet Under' (my favorite character on that show, by far), was perfect for this part. The part of Dexter is made for him.

I like this author's writing style. Humorous, empathetic and readable. The storyline flows, punctuated throughout with darkly humorous wit. I recommend it.

Reading The Dangerous Book For Boys with my son.

I have read two books in the last few weeks. One is called The Widow of the South by Robert Hicks. It has the bonus of being set in my town about a battle for which the school I work at is named. It also became a national best seller.

I ended up enjoying it some but was not overwhelmingly impressed by it.

I also read The Color of Water by James McBride. I finished it last night. It is an interesting read but didn't have anything like the insights I hoped it might for my personal experience of raising a daughter who is half white and half black.

McBride's book was a bizarre tale of a Jewish women who came from a family lucky to leave Europe before the Holocaust but a family that was the product of a loveless arranged marriage and a family that wandered throughout America following the father who was an itinerant rabbi. When they ended up in the Jim Crow South as a member of a small Jewish community, McBride's mother found herself in a world where she was not accepted in the WASP world, found acceptance in the black world, and found little but her mother and her sister to hold her to her Jewish way of life.

She left this world and moved to New York City and found a larger Jewish culture to live in but was not sustained by it. She moved to Harlem at the heyday of the Harlem renaissance and proceeded to have 12 children by two husbands who both died. She was a bizarre woman who emphasized education and faith (Christianity) and disregarded racial identity. All twelve of her children received college degrees and most of them received advanced degrees.

As intriguing as the baseline story was, the book for me passed over things I was interested in and turned left when i wanted to go straight.

I found it interesting that McBride, whose mother tried so hard to downplay and ignore race all her life, found racial identity to be the essential thing to include in descriptions about characters in his memoir.

I'm devouring like a starving man at a salad bar Ron Suskind's The One Percent Doctrine: Deep Inside America's Pursuit of Its Enemies Since 9/11. Some books are page turners because you're just trying desperately to get through it. This one makes me linger and savor Suskind's rich prose:

From on high, it's a dance of fitful indirection, furrowed brows, and passive verbs. Of getting reports on one potential threat after another, knowing most of them are specious, but not understanding exactly why that is indisputably so, or what you might be missing, and then calling another meeting to try to better target your questions. And, along the way, deciding what people--busy Americans on the partisan landscape or some congressional oversight committee---should know, in an era when political savants contend that speaking truth in public is a dangerous practice. And then, it's time for the next briefing, the next conference table and spiderweb chart filled with hard-to-parse Arab names and gossamer connections. In a quieter time, Bill Clinton could grouse to Alan Greenspan that his presidential fortunes---and those of the country's economy---would be determined by judgments from the bond market. Now, they may be determined by whether some mall security guard in Palo Alto notices that the guy in Neiman Marcus is wearing an overcoat in the summer and smells like gardenias and is carrying a funny suitcase; and it will further be determined---the nation's fate, that is----by whether that guard calls the FBI, and whether someone answers, and whether the call is transferred to somebody else who knows what all that means, in time.

Great stuff. Highly recommended.

Just picked up and am 40 pages on on Speaking Freely: Trials of the First Amendment, by Floyd Abrams, the most revered 1st Amendment lawyer in the country. Very interesting stuff.

I also picked up The Summer of 1787 which chronicles the buildup too and the actual proceedings of the Constitutional Convention.

CP

Of all things, I'm back into Atlas Shrugged. I'm only a few hundred pages in, but already enjoying it more than when I first read it. The Roberto Clemente book was outstanding. In between, I'm reading all of the thrillers from Brad Thor.

c

Call me emotionally detached, but usually I don't dive into the more anectodotal threads on AD. But when I saw this one, I had to advertise for my new favorite book:



Hip: The History, by John Leland, makes sense out of an incredibly complex cross-section of US history, from Billy the Kid to Biggie to Bugs Bunny, from Emerson and Thoreau to Libertarianism to the Internet (which is not such a far stretch). From this book, I learned so much about my country, and was so full of pride as I read it. The real history of America is rarely taught in high schools or universities and those chapters that are taught -- the world wars, the civil war, the depression -- are only the catalysts behind the true essence of American history-- our greatest innovations have always been cultural, and few of our more tangible acheivements would be possible without a uniquely American belief in self re-invention, constant and inane change, progress for no other rationale than progress itself. Politically, America has only held sway over the world for a mere century-- this book explains why we will be remembered for centuries to come.

Thanks to you guys, I decided to check this one out too. Like you, MrsP, I flew through the first book and hope to get to the library this weekend to get the next one. I probably won't ever see the show. I don't subscribe to Showtime and never rent DVDs.

You're right, MrsP, that Jeff Lindsay's (the author) writing style has a great streak of dark humor. One aspect of his writing that I really liked was how he switched between a straight first person narration and a stream of consciousness narration for Dexter's different moods. There's probably not a lot of authors that could pull that off, but Lindsay did it quite well. I look forward to my trip to the library this weekend. or maybe this guy is more appropriate.

I'm currently reading Cicero: The Life and Times of Rome's Greatest Politician by Anthony Everitt. It's pretty interesting. Seeing some interesting parallels. The widespread belief that traditional values were being undermined by foreign immigrants, for instance.

Fascinating.

Im currently reading Just and Unjust Wars by Micheal Walzer. He's a fairly prominent political theorist, and he's a professor at Princeton. He wrote a lot of theory during the Vietnam War and his views are heavily shaped by that war. But this book is really interesting, and I would suggest that mostpeople read it. He attempts to construct a conversation about just-war theory using historical examples...It's really interesting.

Well, I'm planning on reading Hey! Who's Having This Baby Anyway? and I'm hoping to find some natural pain-coping mechanisms for my upcoming delivery as well as brush up on other birth-related stuff. My local library doesn't carry it, so I have to order it.

I recently finished Lee Child's Echo Burning, which was my first Lee Child novel. It was recommended by other fans of Michael Connelly's work (my favorite author in the genre). My local library only had two Lee Child novels, neither of which was the first in the Jack Reacher series, so I had to start in the middle...basically I just wanted to get a feel for the author. It was a good read...not quite up to par with Connelly, but I'll definitely start at the beginning of the series and read through them in order.

From Publishers Weekly editorial review:



Prior to that I read The Overlook by Michael Connelly. It's his latest in the Harry Bosch series and was serialized in the NYT, so it was more of a novella than a novel. It was probably his weakest Bosch novel thus far (the 13th in the series), but still a good read for Bosch/Connelly fans.

From Booklist:


While awaiting the release of The Overlook, I read Gentlemen and Players by Joanne Harris. It was one of those books you don't want to put down once you start...both because it's such a great read and because you don't want to get lost (first person narrative, but with three different narrators and not in chronological order). One of the surprises completely threw me for a loop, too, which is always nice.

From School Library Review:


A couple of months ago, I read The Raveling, by Peter Moore Smith. It was a quick and intense read...sometimes confusing but I think it was a great first novel from Smith.

An excerpt from amazon's editorial review:


I tend to really enjoy everything I read (fiction-wise anyway) because I try my best to read only things that I am pretty sure I will enjoy

Just finished 1876 by Gore Vidal. For youpolitical junkies, this is a must read. It's a great fictional account of how Rutherfraud B. Hayes stole the election from Samuel B. Tilden. The portrayal of famous senators and future presidents is very amusing. The end is very exciting and had me reading for detail page after page.

Currently reading blink! and it's a light, quick, fun read on a great topic.

Just finished Blood Work - a great book!

http://www.amazon.com/Blood-Work-Michael-C...y/dp/0446602620

I'm almost through with The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov, a wild, surreal, satiric fantasy which was not published until after the author died in 1940. (No doubt some of his depictions of bureaucracy did not sit well with the Soviet censors.) It's hard to describe briefly -- the protagonist doesn't even show up until the second half of the book -- but it details the events which occur when Satan, along with some very peculiar companions, shows up in Moscow and gets mixed up in the lives of a writer and his mistress. Recommended.

A word of caution...do not waste your time on the movie Blood Work. It was terrible! Clint Eastwood directed and starred (yes...starred - he was only about 20 years too old for the part) and the screenwriter should never write another script again. It was just awful and the only similarities to the book were character names and some random plot points.

And have you ever read any other Michael Connelly? He's definitely my favorite fiction author! I love the Harry Bosch series, but all of his books are wonderful.

INFIDEL a true, passionate tale by Ayaan Hirsi Ali! An amazing woman who has been disowned by her father, and expelled from her family and clan! All because she refused to be silenced about the outrages she and thousands of others have sufferecd. In 2005 Time Magazine named Ayaan Hirsi Ali one of their 100 Most Influential People of 2005, one of the Glamour Heroes of 2005, and Reader's Digest's European of the Year .

Read this book! Believe me, you won't be sorry!!

So I just finished Blink (excellent) and I am about to (finally now that it's in trade paperback) read The Afghan Campaign.

Okay- I am wierd- I will admit it-I am reading "Tony Foale: Motorcycle Chassis design"- I have read it about 5 times through now, and re-read it about once a week right now.

Truly the bible of how to design a motorcycle correctly and safely.

Some good anecdotal stories of racing and motorcycles- I also just picked up "twist of the wrist 2"
http://www.amazon.com/Twist-Wrist-Basics-H...5618&sr=8-9

And, since I am going to Reg Pridmore school, I just ordered this one:
Smooth Riding the Pridmore Way

http://www.amazon.com/Smooth-Riding-Pridmo...5618&sr=8-8


I love these books- it is also a good idea when young motorcyclists want to become old motorcyclists!

I agree entirely. 1876 is one of Vidal's best novels - though the entire American Chronicle series (Burr, Lincoln, 1876, Empire, Hollywood, Washington, D.C., and The Golden Age) is excellent. In fact, I'd say they're all required reading for political junkies - and anyone with an interest in American history. Julian and Creation are quite good as well for those interested in ancient history and religion. Agree or disagree with Vidal's politics, he's one of the best historical novelists this country has ever produced.

I've just finished reading two novels co-authored by Neal Stephenson and his uncle, George Jewsbury. They are a pair of political thrillers originally published under the pseudonym "Stephen Bury" in 1994 and 1996. Anyone who has known me for more than about five seconds will know that I am a huge Neal Stephenson fan - and these novels add yet another dimension to his awesome talents. The first, Interface, is a bit more far-fetched plot-wise and is something of a variation on the Manchurian Candidate theme, with a presidential candidate whose brain is linked via bio-chip to real-time opinion polls. The second, The Cobweb, is set just prior to (and during) Operation Desert Storm and concerns a biological weapons lab operated by Iraq - on US soil. It is eerily prescient on several levels and includes a number of portraits of political life in the nation's capital that seem freakishly accurate. As is often the case with Stephenson, the plot and the extraordinarily well-drawn characters are secondary to the incredibly astute social, political, and economic observations and the depth of research. His style remains as evocative, colorful, and entertaining as ever and, while neither novel matches the scope (or length) of Cryptonomicon or the massive Baroque Cycle (Quicksilver, The Confusion, and The System of the World), they are both complex and stimulating reads.

But for Birmingham: The Local and National Movements in the Civil Rights Struggle
Is one of those books you hope everyone gets to read because it will save hours of frustration when discussing the nature and legacy of the Civil Rights Movement.

It is an entirely unflinching look and the personalities, plans, and divisions on both sides of the struggle told from the vantage point of the "Johannesburg of America". As a local is was an bonus to here about the history neighborhoods and buildings that I've walked and lived in.

The specific scope also brings the occasionally esoteric dialog on Civil Rights into a more earthy and ultimately more interesting paradigm.

It's really a book about the people whose names we all know and we get to her everyone's story as it pertains to the issue.

Fred Shuttlesworth
Bull Connor
Art Hanes
Albert Boutwell
Martin Luther King Jr.
Ralph Abernathy

We've heard their names (except maybe Art and Albert, they were the mayors... both of them... at the same time...that's discussed too) , but if you want to know a little better what they actually did and who they were, find this book in your local library or even better buy it. it is extensively researched and impeccably sourced and it could take time to root around in the background if you so choose.

Commentary on the Westminster Confession of Faith

CSA General James Longstreet's Memoir

Death in the Long Grass--a memoir of an African big game hunter/guide