What are you reading? (2 Viewers)

[saintmdterps]

Recently finished A Higher Call, by Adam Makos. This is a book that will restore your faith in human nature. The book is about a WWII bombing mission in which a B-17 gets badly shot up, is discovered by a German fighter over France, and the German essentially escorts the wounded bomber over the North Atlantic to keep it from being shot down by the Luftwaffe or AA guns along the French coast. After the war, the B-17 pilot goes in search of the German pilot who allowed him and his crew to live. Chivalry is not dead, and this book gives a wonderful insight into the mindset of the German Luftwaffe fighter pilots who, almost to a man, were not Nazis

You will laugh, you will cry. Absolutely fantastic

Amazon.com: Customer reviews: A Higher Call: An Incredible True Story of Combat and Chivalry in the War-Torn Skies of World War II

Now being made into a movie.

 

[B4YOU]

I'm re-reading Dune. I will follow that up with some science, financial, or political book. I like to alternate fiction and non-fiction.

 

[bonnjer]

Almost finished with The Flicker Men and just started with God's Not Dead.

 

[KiwiSaint]

Catastrophe by Max Hastings. A great read about the first few months of WWI.

 

[UncleTrvlingJim]

Reading Ken Follet's latest "Column of Fire". So far so good

 

[rail]

The Hepatitis Bathtub and Other Stories.
An autobiography by NoFX.

Really liked it - good description of the SoCal punk scene in the early 80s, the history of each band member, the highs and lows of fame, really detailed insight on substance addiction, at times sad, hilarious, and poignant. Melvin's rally is worth it on its own. Good read.

 

[Sandman]

After a long break, I just started Beneath a Scarlet Sky. I am liking it so far.

 

[OldSaintFan]

102 Minutes (About individuals escaping from the Twin Towers)

 

[saintmdterps]

Just ripped through all of the Michael Connolly books in sequence for December/January/February. Started March with the most recent Frontlines book, followed by Tuxedo Park by Jennet Conant, The Honest Spy by Andreas Kollender and A World Undone by G. J. Meyer.

Just picked up three Richard K. Morgan books, recently finishing Altered Carbon.

I read The Irregulars by Jennet Conant and found it to be a fascinating account of the lead up to US involvement in WWII.
The intrigues and the characters involved were gripping.

 

[saintmdterps]

I'm re-reading a mix of stuff for work right now.

J.M Coetzee's The life and times of Michael K. This is a Kafkaesque novel that many read as a tribute to Kafka. The protaganist, Michael K., is a small, but complex, tortured soul who is pressed and sqeezed by a dark and haunting environment. Imagine this as a treatment to the question "What if Kafka was writing as a black man in Apartheid era S.Africa?" Great read.

Nancy Easterlin's A Biocultural Aproach to Literary Theory and interpretation. Nancy is an Professor emeritus of Literature at U.N.O, Head of the Woman's studies program, and is one of the more influential academics in my life. She was also my thesis director during my M.A. The attempt is to synthesize literary theory with recent advances in cognitive science. This is a re-read for me, one of many, but I find her ideas on place, space, and environment particularly insightful.

Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintainance. I have just begun this book as I am traveling and wanted something light for the long plane ride back to the states. It's one of those books that I have heard about for years and just never got around to. It's too early for much of a review, but, as someone who has done a lot of long distance motorcycle adventuures, I can say that I really appreciate his handling of the feel of a long ride through the countryside.

William Godwin's Caleb Williams. Godwin is often cited as the father of modern anarchism. This novel was inteneded to popularize the radical politics of his "Enquiry Concerning political Justice" It shows how instiututions and power can and do
crush the individual. It's a fast moving, perhaps somewhat poorly written, entertaining book that is an early detective or pursuit story.

Zen and the art of Motorcycle Maintenance is excellent as regards both Zen and Chautauquas, despite the authors assertion that his book does not do well with “either Zen or Motorcycle Maintenance”

 

[Sandman]

After a long break, I just started Beneath a Scarlet Sky. I am liking it so far.

Finished Beneath a Scarlet Sky. It is supposed to be a mostly true novel. I don't know how much of the story is true, but it was a good story.

I have also read the first two novels in the "Troy Rising Series" about Earth's 1st contact, its subjugation to an alien race, and its rise via the power of maple syrup. The first two books have been very enjoyable.

 

[Rdanderson91]

Anything by Michael crichton, Piers Anthony, David Brin. I’m on the Phule’s series right now by Robert Aspirin.

 

[Sandman]

I finished the Troy Rising series. It looks like he is set up to write more on that. I really liked that group of books.

I also just finished (after putting it down and picking it back up a number of times) A Brief History of Time by Steven Hawking. Great book that gets you thinking on a whole different level, but it isn't light reading even though he has clearly "dumbed down" a lot of the subjects. You have to really be concentrating (and go back and re-read a lot) on this--at least I had to.

I am now reading a book about Bella Gunness--The Butcher of Men. A serial killer from the late 1800s to early 1900s. She lured men to her farm with want ads in a paper. I have seen her described as the first "Craig's List Killer." Killed over 40 men. Faked her own death in a house fire, and got away with it. Interesting as hell so far.

 

[B-Rich]

Just finished reading "If Kennedy Lived: The First and Second Terms of President John F. Kennedy: An Alternate History" by Jeff Greenfield. Pretty interesting premise; begins with the weather in Dallas not clearing up and the presidential limo keeping the "bubble top" on, which allows JFK to survive the one shot he sustained...

I've read a similar book about Bobby Kennedy surviving his assassination and becoming president in 1968, but that was a fawning fantasy by a terrible amateur author. Greenfield is a erudite journalist and author, and this stuff is well-researched and cited in the last chapter-- his alternate history is not just some flight of fancy, there's a lot to back it up.

It gets a little cutesy at times with foreshadowing (a young Al Gore. Jr. telling his dad, " Makes sense --you can't expect to be elected President if you can't carry your home state"; Barry Goldwater suggesting that "some enterprising person may start a private delivery service that would give the Post Office a run for their money"). And, despite his credentials, I think that Greenfield falls a bit to the typical feel of his generation, that, "if Kennedy had lived, everything would not only be different, it would have been GREAT".

But it was overall a good read.

 

[Mr. Sparkle]

Twilight of the Gods: A Journey to the End of Classic Rock by Steven Hyden

It's a very fun read if you're of a certain age and consumed tons of Led Zeppelin/Stones/Springsteen growing up