Barbarian Days of Surfing was my favorite book of the year. Great surfing stoke; story arc of surfing dirtbag/traveler eventually gets old.
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Barbarian Days of Surfing was my favorite book of the year. Great surfing stoke; story arc of surfing dirtbag/traveler eventually gets old.
Just finished it. Excellent book. A lot of parallels in there for the aging powderhound (or human being in general). A worthwhile read for sure.Quote:
Originally Posted by Cravenmorhead
The dark tower series - Stephen king
Read the gunslinger years ago, and it never really grabbed me even after reading prob every book he had before that.
Needed a book recently and thought I would give the series another look since movie adaptation is due soon.
Anyhow, 8 books have kept me busy the last couple of months, and they are fantastic in a lord of the rings western that totally delivers.
I think it is right up there in argument as his best writing.
Seveneves - great near science fiction book where earth is destroyed, and mankind has to survive. And women save the day.
Aurora - multi generational space flight over thousands of years to get to a goldilocks system. Very cool AI subplot.
Saturn Run - written by a dude that rights like crime novels. He teams up with a tech expert to write this story of a race to saturn to try and beat the Chinese there. Really good book that gets heavy in the science and geo politics
Hidden life of trees- so so good.
Just finished it and life will never be the same.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01C9116AK...ng=UTF8&btkr=1
You might like four fieldsQuote:
Originally Posted by b-bear
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/16190...s4L&ref=plSrch
Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson.
I read Elon Musk's biography over the holidays and it was great. Really shows his passion to...change the world, and the way we work. Incredible.
https://www.amazon.com/Elon-Musk-Spa...ords=elon+musk
Has anyone used GoodReads before? I've been playing with it a little bit lately.
recent favorites:
Down by The River by Charles Bowden, which is a work of journalism centered around the murder of a DEA agent's brother, but branching out into the whole of the US/Mexican drug war and the borderlands as a region.
Surviving Survival by Laurence Gonzales. A blend of storytelling and neuroscience focusing on describing useful and detrimental approaches to handling post traumatic stress.
Know its been out for a bit, but Dead Wake by Larrsen was an interesting read about the Lusitania, U boats, and Churchill's rationale.
I'm finding the early parts of Bill Bryson's newest one, "The Road To Little Dribbling" to be a bit of a slog, somewhat surprisingly. Usually it's the second half that gets boring, they usually start out funny.
I'm really enjoying that series. The books are long and there were a few times that I wish the author moved on, but overall I think they move well and the story is engaging. Hoping that 3rd book comes out this year.Quote:
Originally Posted by buildakicker
I read they are making a movie out of that series.Quote:
Originally Posted by Grange
Ever read L.E. Modesitt jr? I just order a couple books. An older friend of mine told me about him.
Backpacking with the Saints
If you like spiritual reading, it's pretty good. Author's adventures hiking in the West and Ozarks and each chapter tells of a different outing and a different person (all faiths covered) and what they preached.
I don't think I've read any of his book though I do look for recommendations.Quote:
Originally Posted by buildakicker
That's interesting news about Stormlight Archive. I hope they do it justice as the source material is huge.
Lately I've been working my way through the Star Wars Canon books. I recently finished Catalyst, and have to say I was underwhelmed. It provides good backstory, but I was bored through much of it. I'm working on Tarkin now, and while better than Catalyst it is not as good and the most recent Aftermath book.
I'm also working my way through some books that I got free through Kindle and then bought the audible version for about $2. I recently listened to Monster Hunter International, which was quite entertaining. It kind of reminded me of the Dresden series, which I love.
I'm nearly at the end of Indifferent Stars Above by Daniel James Brown. He also wrote Boys in the Boat, so he has cred. It's especially interesting if you have ever spent time around Truckee. Haunting story that was well researched and written.
Just read beast in the garden because I saw this. And guess what just happened- dog eaten in my parent's neighborhood. I guess they should have reported that cougar on the sidewalk a few weeks ago...Quote:
Originally Posted by b-bear
Got on a timothy egan kick recently. The big burn, lasso the old west, and worst hard time. They all kind of have a similar theme
hey spoiler alert!Quote:
Originally Posted by jamal
Guess we don't have to read that one.
Very good read; I don't keep books, so if anyone wants my copy, it's yours for the price of a decent sixer.Quote:
Originally Posted by Cravenmorhead
I love Sanderson, but I haven't been able to get into Way of Kings. I've tried a few times and haven't been able to get past the first couple chapters.Quote:
Originally Posted by buildakicker
Does it pick up at some point?
Hmmmmm, yes. I feel like I had that same starting drag... I read it a couple years ago. I just remembered at the end I was so excited for the next book.... Alas... It's not all written yet.Quote:
Originally Posted by TheSilverSurfer
The third book in the Stormlight Archive, Oathbringer, is due out this November according to Brandon Sanderson's website and apparently has a novella for this series included in Arcanum Unbounded which is a collection of short fiction stories from his other series.
As far as does Way of Kings pick up, well for me it did. I was starting to get bored in parts such as Kaladin's struggles with Bridge Four, but once it started picking up it kept going. To me this is typical of the way Brandon Sanderson writes. He builds and builds and then goes big at the end. Book Two, Words of Radiance, starts to tie the main characters from the first book together.
If your having a hard time with these books (they are long) try the audio version. I find it easier to get through a difficult book by listening to the audio version rather than reading it. I don't think I could have gotten through The Wheel of Time series from book 5 or so through 10 without the audio versions.
I have the unabridged Audible versions of both Way of Kings and Words of Radiance. The narrators are the same one's that have done other Brandon Sanderson books and the Wheel of Time series.
The Tooth Divide: Beauty, Class and the Story of Dentistry
Politicians, journalists and researchers have a long-running problem when it comes to talking about class. The definitions we use are myriad and not always overlapping. Is the boundary of the middle class a college degree, a certain level of income? Perhaps a certain type of job: a teacher or a doctor versus a coal miner or factory worker? We might be missing a still more useful — and more personal — indicator, however.
This is the premise, though not so bluntly stated, of Mary Otto’s new book, “Teeth: The Story of Beauty, Inequality, and the Struggle for Oral Health in America.” The dividing line between the classes might be starkest between those who spend thousands of dollars on a gleaming smile and those who suffer and even die from preventable tooth decay.
If the idea of death from tooth decay is shocking, it might be because we so rarely talk about the condition of our teeth as a serious health issue. Instead, we think of our teeth as the ultimate personal responsibility. We fear the dentist because we fear judgment as well as pain; we are used to the implication that if we have a tooth problem, if our teeth are decaying or crooked or yellow, it is because we have failed, and failed at something so intimate that it means we ourselves are failures.
Otto’s book begins and ends with the story of Deamonte Driver, a 12-year-old Maryland boy who died of an infection caused by one decaying tooth, and the system that failed him. In pointing out the flaws in that system, Otto takes us back through the history of dentistry and shows us how the dental profession evolved, separately from the rest of health care, into a mostly private industry that revolves almost entirely around one’s ability to pay. In other words, all of the problems with health care in America exist in the dental system, but exponentially more so.
On the high end of the $110 billion-a-year dental industry, there are veneers for $1,000 each, “gum contouring” and more than $1 billion per year spent on tooth whitening products. A dentist tells Otto that members of his profession “once exclusively focused upon fillings and extractions, are nowadays considered providers of beauty.” And thanks to decades of deregulation, allowing medical advertising and then medical credit cards, they are doing well at it — according to a 2010 study, dentists make more per hour than doctors.
Did they mention the guy from Poughkeepsie? I believe he revolutionized anesthesia for dental surgery? His ex home on the hill is now a park for my local touring.Quote:
Originally Posted by PNWbrit
Drive, by Daniel Pink.
All about rethinking motivation in the work place.
I've recently been plowing through 2 series:
1. The Hap and Leonard series by Joe R. Lansdale.
If you're not into starting at the beginning (and you really don't need to, imho), I would suggest RUMBLE TUMBLE, which has been my favorite of the seven I've read thus far. It's light-hearted, violent, PoMo pulp with quick dialogue and a tongue-in-cheek undertone. Also check CAPTAINS COURAGEOUS and VANILLA RIDE.
2. The Burke series by Andrew Vachss
While starting at the beginning with the first novel, Flood, is a good idea, similar to the Hap/Leonard novels, you can pretty much start anywhere. My favorites of the 15 I've read have been: HARD CANDY, BLOSSOM, DOWN IN THE ZERO, FOOTSTEPS OF THE HAWK, SAFE HOUSE, and DEAD AND GONE, and DOWN HERE.
As for stand-alone novels...
I've just started THE AMAZING ADVENTURES OF KAVALIER AND CLAY by Michael Chabon. I'm only 200 pages in, but am digging it, even though it's a bit dense (i.e wordy), but the story is intriguing, especially if you are a comic book nerd (or just a semi-geek with a passable knowledge of the Golden and Silver Age eras of comic books).
AS SHE CLIMBED ACROSS THE TABLE by Jonathan Lethem is an interesting sci-fi/love triangle yarn involving particle physics.
A buddy loaned me PATIENT ZERO, by Jonathan Maberry which was a quick read. It's in the sci-fi/military vein and reminded me of a super-updated James Bond-type story complete with gadgetry, evil villains bent on world domination, and zombies. Supposed to be coming out as a film soon, too.
Just finished book three of "The Cemetery of Forgotten Books" series by Carlos Ruiz Zafon. A bit flowery and dramatic at times, but worth the journey. All three books, while they can be read alone or in any order, fit together like a massive, intricate puzzle, revealing different facets of characters and their motivations. Great shit. The final volume comes out in English in 2018; I can hardly wait. Recommended.
I was just talking with someone about Shadow of the wind tonight. I enjoyed all three, good recommendationQuote:
Originally Posted by Flyoverland Captive
Cove by Cynan Jones
Short but very sweet
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon....rFsQg%2BCL.jpg
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Cove-Cynan-...words=the+cove
If you like that, then The Dig should be next.
Blood Meridian by Cormac McCarthy
The Sisters Brothers by Patrick Dewitt
Both westerns. Good western books and movies are my favorite genre. Everyone knows of Blood Meridian, it is serious and gnarly...scalping, hoss prostitutes, forced army work in mexico. The Sisters Brothers is hilarious and intense. Great read. I regard both of these titles as must reads.
Fordlandia -
Henry Ford tries to build a city in the amazon - dude was arguably richest guy on earth and straight up crazy.
I have heard that the book thief by Markus Zusak is pretty good.
Blood Meridian is one of those books that gets better every time I read it. Holy shit, its violent.Quote:
Originally Posted by McDreamerson
I'll have to check out the Sisters Brothers.
"The Sellout" by Paul Beatty. Just started it on a recommendation from a friend. Has anyone else read it?
Just polished off The Shotgun Rule by Charlie Huston.
Imagine a mid-'80s coming-of-age story as written by Quentin Tarantino.
Well paced, gritty, hyper-violent, some nice twists.
Quick and gritty read.
http://charliehuston.com/books
I own it but haven't finished it yet. A TGR poster here used to be called "Tuffy", based on another Beatty book, remember him? I think he was Tuffy109 at powdermag.Quote:
Originally Posted by The AD
been on a simon winchester kick lately-
My coworker started it our by giving me "A crack at the edge of the world" and I have been hooked (about plate tectonics based around the story of the big 1906 san fran earthquake)
Then did Krakatoa - prob my favorite out of the winchester's I have read so far
The Map that changed the world
Also on rec from others here The Last Ridge about the 10th Mtn Division was so good so I must re-rec since it has to do with all of our common passion
Now I am reading that book about microbes that cane out this yr "We contain multitudes"
I keep annoying andrew by quoting info from this book so is good so far but I am maybe only 1/4 way thru
say the quotes with a snooty british accent
haha there are SOO many footnotes
i once had to write a very important academic paper. it was supposed to be 20 pages long and take a year. mine was 20 pages with 98 pages of endnotes and took 6 years. needless to say, that didn't turn out too well. :)