What book(s) are you reading now?

[Smoke]

By the way, the author of the two books I just mentioned is definitely a liberal, and ...you just won't believe this...I am not afraid to read his books! Nor am I afraid to read Thomas Friedman's books,even though he's a liberal too! In fact, he's one of my favorite authors and thinkers of our time.

For that matter, I recently read a book by Carville too - and not only did I not fall over dead, lightning didn't strike me either.

I think we can reach the best conclusions about things when we read from a wide variety of sources - when we try to truly understand where people get their POV and what they are trying to accomplish. It's an interesting learning experience.

I agree. I don't have any problem at all reading conservative authors. I loved Barry Goldwater's With No Apologies, and I found many of William F. Buckley's and Edmund Burke's writings very interesting. I have even read Mein Kampf and The Protocols of the Elders of Zion, which may be unenlightening but are of historical interest. However, one has to draw the line somewhere.

 

[cardero]

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[rageoftyrael]

i'm reading mercedes lackey books. i'm also reading the demonata series by darren shan.

 

[rojse]

i'm reading mercedes lackey books.

My condolences.

 

[rageoftyrael]

i like mercedes lackey's books. what don't you like about them?

 

[Mr Cheese]

The Work of the kabbalist by Z'ev Ben Shimon halevi (again)

and various java and visual basic texts...

 

[rojse]

i like mercedes lackey's books. what don't you like about them?

Repetitive plots (plucky woman ventures forth to save the day), cliched and repetitive characters, far too much introspection, and little in the way of excitement or ideas.

 

[YmirGF]

Jaysus, YmirGF - the PIG series is pure unabashed US Republican propaganda from start to finish. And there you are calling Michael Moore's films inaccurate schlock on another thread!

Now there is a mischaracterisation and misrepresentation that is almost worthy of Michael Moore. How terribly amusing.

In fact, that's the only reason I poked my head back in here - after reading your comments on that thread and seeing your name here I thought "Hmm - I wonder what YmirGF has been reading". Hee hee hee. Now I know.

I see my bait had exactly the intended effect.

 

[Nepenthe]

Just finished Asturias' astoundingly good Men of Maize, and now I'm reading Michael Shermer's Science Friction- it's a collection of essays so I read a few then go back to reread Pape's Dying to Win in between chapters.

 

[Caladan]

Before going back to the university to start my Master's, i'm trying to read up on history and archaeology of parts of the world we are not really dealing with in my department. I'm currently reading: The ancient sun kingdoms of the Americas by Victor Wolfgang von Hagen.

 

[Alceste]

Before going back to the university to start my Master's, i'm trying to read up on history and archaeology of parts of the world we are not really dealing with my my department. I'm currently reading: The ancient sun kingdoms of the Americas by Victor Wolfgang von Hagen.

Ooh, I bet that's interesting. Is that a "layman" kind of book or more academic?

The Incas and a number of other ancient American cultures are touched on in the Wayfinders, which I'm nearly finished - my interest has been piqued. I'd like to read a slightly less fawning account of these cultures, and with more detail.

 

[Caladan]

Ooh, I bet that's interesting. Is that a "layman" kind of book or more academic?

I do find it friendly to the layman.

The Incas and a number of other ancient American cultures are touched on in the Wayfinders, which I'm nearly finished - my interest has been piqued. I'd like to read a slightly less fawning account of these cultures, and with more detail.

One of the most encompassing works one can find is Prescott's 'The History of the Conquest of Mexico', in a time when Europe's thinkers doubted the achievements attributed to the cultures of mesoamerica, he went directly to the Spanish archives and presented in his work the cultural achievements of the Aztecs and the tragedy of the Spanish conquest.

 

[Alceste]

Thanks for the tip, Caladan.

 

[rageoftyrael]

Have you read any of her valdemar series? this is by far my favorite of her books. At least half of these books are about men, and they all tend to be pretty exciting, or so i thought. yes, there does tend to be a lot of introspection, but i've never really had a problem with that.

 

[Kathryn]

I'm going back to Virginia to see my daughter again and so I'm back on my Virginia history tear. Been reading up on Jefferson, Monticello, the history of slavery in Virginia, that sort of thing. Pretty interesting.

 

[gnomon]

The Last Wish by Sapkowski. The book that inspired the video game "The Witcher". It's actually pretty good. It definitely plays on the old fairy tale themes but with a much better telling than I've read from others who use old cliches.

 

[rojse]

Have you read any of her valdemar series? this is by far my favorite of her books. At least half of these books are about men, and they all tend to be pretty exciting, or so i thought. yes, there does tend to be a lot of introspection, but i've never really had a problem with that.

I've read the "Heralds of Valdemar" trilogy, "Mage Winds" trilogy, "Mage Storms" trilogy, "Owl" trilogy, "The Last Herald-Mage" trilogy, "Mage Wars" trilogy, "Vows and Honour" trilogy, and "By The Sword". Multiple times. :yes:

 

[MSizer]

Experiments in Ethics, Kwame Anthony Appiah.

 

[rageoftyrael]

lol, and here i thought i was defending mercedes lackey. so you do like her valdemar books? here's at least two more you might be interested in, one is brightly burning, though to be honest, it is really depressing, lol. The other is a new one, called foundation. also, i think "to be a thief" is another one, which is good as well.

 

[rojse]

lol, and here i thought i was defending mercedes lackey. so you do like her valdemar books? here's at least two more you might be interested in, one is brightly burning, though to be honest, it is really depressing, lol. The other is a new one, called foundation. also, i think "to be a thief" is another one, which is good as well.

I read her books when I was a teenager, back when I had access to relatively few books. Mercedes Lackey was one of the authors I could read, particularly her Valdemar series'.

As I said though, formulaic, repetitive, cliched characters, little in the way of ideas or plot, and introspection over action.