What Are You Reading?

[Brewdude]

Just took delivery of what looks to be a fine book - "Blood And Fears" by one Kevin Wilson. An account of how America's 8th Air Force helped save the war efforts in WW II.

This was gifted to me by my cousin Don who's a huge WW II buff. And my late Pap flew B-17's and B-24's in the Army Air Corp in that conflict. So this will be a welcome read.

8)



Cheers,

RR

 

[Buckshot]

"The Thief" by Clive Cussler. Another one in his Isaac Bell series.

 

[Brewdude]

Just finished reading "All Quiet On The Western Front". Somehow this didn't live up to my expectations. Hard to say why.


Cheers,

RR

 

[Fight'n Hampsters]

Salt, by Mark Kurlansky

Good book!

 

[Brewdude]

Re-read Bill Bryson's "The Road To Little Dribbling" for the 3rd or 4th time. Never get tired of Bryson and his way with words. Pity he doesn't come out with a new book more often.

I've read and re-read all his travel books multiple times, including and especially "A Walk In The Woods" (the Appalachian trail adventure) which is Bryson at his finest IMHO. And "One Summer" is no slouch either, even if it isn't a travel book strictly speaking. This is an amazing account of the significant events in 1927 which were pretty incredible! Come to that, "The Life And Times Of The Thunderbolt Kid" is good as well.

Can you tell I'm a huge Bryson fan?

:cherry:


Cheers,

RR

 

[Deleted member 2386]

DrT, read this book years ago also back in High School. Now that all I have is time on my hands I'd like to enjoy reading it again. As you get older one tends to also forget, " a mind is a terrible thing to waste "! 


Also want to refresh my memory with another classic:
Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller, I believe I'm a Willy Loman type of guy.....allot of travels in my life but not as a salesman. Over 34 years and at the end I got the shaft as Willy did....lol


KEEP ON PUFFING!!!

Always good to be reading the good stuff!

If anyone is interested, this is what else I've assigned this semester
World Civ 1 ... The Bacchae
History of Britain (sophomore level) ... Canterbury Tales, Taming of the Shrew, Sherlock Holmes, A Murder is Announced (Christie)
World 1914-45 ... R.U.R. (Capek), The Blacker the Berry (Wallace Thurman, Harlem Renaissance), Unnatural Death (Sayers), Of Mice & Men

Late to the bacchanalia but glad to see you're teaching Euripides!

 

[Deleted member 2386]

Have the bad habit of bouncing through half a dozen books at once, but right now I'm mostly focused on Radiant Terminus, a delightfully strange novel by Antoine Volodine.

 

[Brewdude]

I'm back to scratching my itch for more WWII books. Went trawling through the local library and came home with this - "The Holocaust: Death Camps", edited by Tamara L. Roleff. This is a compiled account from dozens of eye witnesses as well as active participants (prisoners as well as Nazis) in the horror that was the extermination camps. Very chilling and thought provoking!


Cheers?

RR

 

[fishnbanjo]

Just finished David Baldacci's latest "The Fix", had me hooked on the first page, he writes some great stuff.
banjo

 

[Brewdude]

"Two and Two: McSorley's, my Dad, and Me" by Rafe Bartholomew.

A biography by Rafe Bartholomew of the oldest tavern in Manhatten - McSorley's. Fascinating story of its history, its employees, and incidents from the experiences of the son of the oldest bartender. Gritty and real-life. Strong non-pc language. Quite well written and highly recommended!

8)


Cheers,

RR

 

[Brewdude]

Tried to read "The Last of the Mohicans" but couldn't get into it. The way it's written is too ponderous and difficult for me. Guess I'm not a scholar.

Started re-reading a favorite Bill Bryson Book - "Notes From A Small Island". More my speed I guess!


Cheers,

RR

 

[Lonecoyote]

Started reading the long version, not the paperback:

The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich
By William L. Shirer



KEEP ON PUFFING!!!

 

[Brewdude]

Just started Bill Bryson's "At Home - A Short History Of Private Life". Only a few chapters into it but is has me solidly hooked! I've long been a Bryson fan primarily from his travel books.

"At Home" seems to be very well researched and superbly written as only Bryson can do. I look forward to reading the remaining pages!


Cheers,

RR

 

[hobie1dog]

Still reading MF Horn- autobiography of the god of high note trumpet playing Maynard Ferguson.

 

[Lakebound]

Currently starting to get back into reading again. I'm halfway through the first in a series titled "Master and Commander" by Patrick O'Brian.

I am not an avid reader and most books that I have bought or have received as gifts must capture my attention within the first few pages or I give them up. This book (and I suspect the remainder of the series) has captured my attention and I enjoy reading from it nightly.

Frank

 

[cajun]

Refreshing my self so when I go see the Movie I will have some knowledge , read about it long ago, wanted an up date look at it.

 

[Lonecoyote]

The Diary of a Young Girl
Author: Anne Frank



VERY SAD TIMES!

 

[Brewdude]

Just started Bill Bryson's "At Home - A Short History Of Private Life". Only a few chapters into it but is has me solidly hooked! I've long been a Bryson fan primarily from his travel books.

"At Home" seems to be very well researched and superbly written as only Bryson can do. I look forward to reading the remaining pages!


Cheers,

RR

This turned out to be a most amazing book. In fact, it's turned out to be one of my most favourite Bryson's books.

The care he took in researching this is obvious. And while it does ramble a bit at times it's always entertaining and very informative. Sometimes even brilliantly engaging.

Well done Bill, and I can't understand why I overlooked this one before. Guess I was caught up in your travel book accounts and somehow thought this would be a let down. It was anything but.

Now onto another of Bryson's non-travel books- "A Short History Of Nearly Everything". This one is rather more, shall we say, challenging..........

But I'm struggling through it.  :|


Cheers,

RR

 

[Brewdude]

Just completed Bryson's "A Short History Of Nearly Everything". Frankly it was a challenge to finish this. I'm not much of a scholar, and this is very dense with quite technical and detailed discussion about subjects that I could never grasp when I was in school. And it takes them to the PhD level and beyond!

In spite of that, I did finish it but ended up skimming many of the pages. It was just too far beyond me!  :silent:   

Bryson clearly did his research (from what I can gather), and for those with more developed minds this will be more relevant. For me, not so much. As always, YMMV.



Cheers,

RR

 

[Ozark Wizard]

Read The Giving Tree to my youngest grandson over Skype tonight.