neoteric lefty
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Wed Feb-18-04 01:06 AM
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Whats your favorite non-fiction book? |
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non-fiction and non-political (at least current politics):
Some of my favs that I can think of at this late hour:
Zen and the art of motorcycle maintenance .... Robert Pirsig Darwin's Dangerous Idea .... Daniel Dennet Elegant Universe .... Brian Greene
name a few of yours... we shout get a Lounge Summer reading list going on. Whoa, maybe it's gettting a bit late :)
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jus_the_facts
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Wed Feb-18-04 01:11 AM
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1. Our Angry Earth~Isaac Asimov and Frederick Pohl..... |
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.....Beginnings~Isaac Asimov....are my top two! :)
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SeveneightyWhoa
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Wed Feb-18-04 01:13 AM
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Yes, I know you said non-fiction.
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david_vincent
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Wed Feb-18-04 01:16 AM
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Famous Long Ago by Raymond Mungo
the Meditations of Marcus Aurelius
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ironflange
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Wed Feb-18-04 01:16 AM
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4. Here are a few I've read recently |
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Recently re-read "The End of Evolution" by Peter Ward. Fascinating and not a little disturbing. Also "The Farfarers" by Farley Mowat. Very interesting account of early North American settlement. Interested in the Franklin Expedition? Try Scott Cookman's "Ice Blink." A plausible alternate take on the Arctic disaster. Or there's something called "The Franklin Conspiracy," where Arctic exploration meets the X-Files, with little success. Strictly for novelty value only.
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Redneck Socialist
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Wed Feb-18-04 01:18 AM
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by H.D. Thoreau (need you even ask? For shame!)and Desert Solitaire (Ed Abbey) are two books that influenced me greatly. I could probably think of some more but it is late and my brain is on political overload from too much time in GD: 2004 primary. I just popped in here for a breather.
Oh yeah, let's throw Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail (Hunter S. Thompson, again shame on you if you didn't know that already) in there too for shits and giggles.
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seethrougheyes
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Thu Feb-19-04 08:52 AM
Response to Reply #5 |
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is an amazing book and Henry Thoreau is one of my favourite authors. Walden is a not entirely non-fiction though,.....while it's most non-fiction the book is based on one year living at Walden, but in fact he lived there to conduct his experiment for 2 years. :)
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blackcat77
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Wed Feb-18-04 01:29 AM
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6. "The Good War" -- Studs Terkel |
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Shows what this nation can do when it's united in a cause. Personal stories by the people who lived them.
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mitchum
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Wed Feb-18-04 01:30 AM
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7. "In Cold Blood" Truman Capote |
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"Radical Chic and Mau-Mauing the Flak Catchers" Tom Wolfe "The Meditations of Marcus Aurelius" "Childhood: Biography of a Place" Harry Crews
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Redneck Socialist
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Wed Feb-18-04 01:59 AM
Response to Reply #7 |
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Thanks for reminding me. Lets add "Electric Koolaid Acid Test" by Tom Wolfe to the list. Cause it rocks!
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Sandpiper
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Wed Feb-18-04 01:35 AM
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8. The Demon Haunted World |
Commie Pinko Dirtbag
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Wed Feb-18-04 09:55 AM
Response to Reply #8 |
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Carl Sagan rocks. Why oh why couldn't he live as long as Strom Thurmond? And Asimov too while I'm at it. :cry:
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Blue_State_Elitist
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Wed Feb-18-04 01:35 AM
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Stephen Ambrose. Historical brilliance.
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The Zanti Regent
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Wed Feb-18-04 01:37 AM
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10. Capitalism, Socialism and Democracy by Joseph Schumpeter |
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Dr Schumpeter wrote his magnum opus 50 years ago as a warning to Americans that they were killing the goose that laid the golden egg.
The really scary part is that everything Dr Schumpeter predicted is coming to pass, rigged elections, hyperdeficits and the coming collapse of the US...
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Sequoia
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Wed Feb-18-04 06:07 PM
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45. Well, I'm going to read that |
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so thank you. I shoud not look at this post, I'm too much of a book adict as it is.
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rhino47
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Wed Feb-18-04 01:46 AM
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avb7
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Wed Feb-18-04 01:49 AM
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12. The Glory and the Dream |
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A narrative history of the USA from 1932-1972 by William Manchester..made me think more than any book I have ever read.
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RainDog
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Wed Feb-18-04 02:07 AM
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14. A Natural History of the Senses |
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by Diane Ackerman. She's a poet, and the way she evokes the senses shows you what a great writer can do.
The Land Where Blues Began by Alan Lomax. He and his dad were ethnomusicologists who went down to the foreign land of the Mississippi Delta and recorded Leadbelly for the first time, among other famous names. Whites threatened them for talking to black people back in the bad old days.
King Leopold's Ghost- about Belgium's horror in the Congo, the true life person who was the source for Kurtz in The Heart of Darkness, Mark Twain's (and other American intellectuals') protests against the treatment of Africans by those who would have empire, and more.
The Great Fear and The Coming of the French Revolution (two books) by Georges LeFevre. interesting history.
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loftycity
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Wed Feb-18-04 09:50 AM
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15. Waking up in Time by Peter Russell |
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Critical Mass and how it applies to our daily lives and to history. Very Good and the complete book is on his web site. http://www.PeterRussell.com
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Loonman
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Wed Feb-18-04 09:53 AM
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16. South: A Memoir of the Endurance Voyage by Sir Ernest Shackleton |
terrya
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Wed Feb-18-04 09:54 AM
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17. "United States" by Gore Vidal |
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A superb collection of his essays...political and non-political.
Terry
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Faygo Kid
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Wed Feb-18-04 10:02 AM
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19. "Battle Cry of Freedom;" "Rise and Fall of the Third Reich" |
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Way too many to list, but those two are absolute must reads for any educated person.
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11 Bravo
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Wed Feb-18-04 10:03 AM
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20. "The Abortion" by Richard Brautigan and |
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"Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas" by Hunter S. Thompson.
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Spider Jerusalem
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Wed Feb-18-04 10:13 AM
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"Gödel, Escher, Bach: An Eternal Golden Braid", by Douglas Hofsteder;
"The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire", by Edward Gibbon;
"The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich", by William L. Shirer;
Richard Feynman's "Lectures on Physics";
"The Mismeasure of Man", by Stephen Jay Gould
Most of my non-fiction reading tends to be in the fields of science and history...
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dontomas
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Wed Feb-18-04 10:14 AM
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Flags of Our Fathers by James Bradley
Rumor of War by Philip Caputo
A Brief History of Time by Stephen Hawking
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Bunny
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Wed Feb-18-04 10:20 AM
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23. The Moral Animal by Robert Wright |
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I find evolutionary psychology to be endlessly fascinating. Reciprocal altruism, etc. Good Stuff!
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NightTrain
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Wed Feb-18-04 10:23 AM
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24. It ain't political, but... |
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Dave Marsh, THE HEART OF ROCK AND SOUL: THE 1001 GREATEST SINGLES EVER MADE.
Originally published in 1989, reprinted in 1998.
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Richardo
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Wed Feb-18-04 10:25 AM
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25. Isaac's Storm and Devil in the White City (Erik Larson) |
Richardo
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Wed Feb-18-04 10:26 AM
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26. Innumeracy (John Allen Paulos) |
Richardo
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Wed Feb-18-04 10:27 AM
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27. Last Chance to See (Douglas Adams) |
Richardo
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Wed Feb-18-04 10:29 AM
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29. Dragons of Eden (Carl Sagan) |
Richardo
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Wed Feb-18-04 12:43 PM
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37. Helter Skelter (Vincent Bugliosi) |
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...set the tone for the "true crime" book. But as he was the lead prosecutor, the inside story is amazing.
I read it in college (UCLA), and West LA is the scene for a lot of the story. That added a large amount of :scared:
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regularguy
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Wed Feb-18-04 11:32 AM
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33. Good one. I took his (Poulos') probability class. Real nice guy |
terrya
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Wed Feb-18-04 10:27 AM
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28. I second "Devil in the White City". Superb. And now in softcover |
Bunny
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Wed Feb-18-04 12:46 PM
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38. Isaac's Storm was good too. |
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That was one HELL of a storm, wasn't it??
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Richardo
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Wed Feb-18-04 12:49 PM
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39. A lot of people outside Texas don't know that 6,000+ people were killed |
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Still the deadliest natural disaster in US history...
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Red State Rebel
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Thu Feb-19-04 01:06 AM
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54. I was amazed when I read about it. |
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I had never heard of it and I couldn't believe it! So many stories within the story - I cannot imagine how horrifying that night must have been.
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Red State Rebel
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Thu Feb-19-04 01:03 AM
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52. Isaacs Storm was fascinating... |
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I had no idea about the Galveston Hurricane and the sheer enormity of the death and devastation it caused.
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Az
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Wed Feb-18-04 10:44 AM
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30. Demon Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Darkness by Carl Sagan |
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This was Sagan's parting gift to the world. It should be required reading in schools. It is a marvelous testimony to the quest for truth and knowledge.
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Bertha Venation
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Wed Feb-18-04 10:55 AM
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31. David McCullough's biography of Harry Truman. |
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The best biography I've ever read.
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ConcernedCanuk
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Wed Feb-18-04 11:07 AM
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32. Non-fiction? - well the Dictionary of course !! |
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. . .
BUT - seriously
It would be "Death Dealers" and the other books written by Yves Lavigne, who infiltrated the Hells Angels as a member to get the information for his stories.
There are at least two other books by Yves that I have read on this "adventure", but the titles escape me at the moment
gonna sneak in some fiction titles below
THE MINOTAUR . . . STEPHEN COONTS . . . XLNT/STEALTH PLANES/GOVT. MOLES . . . . . . FATAL CURE . . . . ROBIN COOK . . . XLNT HOSPITAL DEATHS % SLANT . . . . . . GREG BEAR . . . XLNT YR.2052 -- READ AGAIN !!! ACCEPTABLE RISK . ROBIN COOK . . . XLNT POSSIBLE LSD/PRIMATE REVERSAL . . . . . MR. MURDER . . . . DEAN KOONTZ . . . XLNT AUTHOR CLONED PHSYCO/MURDER . . RED SKY AT NIGHT . JAMES W. HALL . . . XLNT DOLPHIN MURDERS/ENDORPHINS . STRONG MEDICINE . . ARTHUR HAILEY . . . XLNT PHARMACEUTICAL FALSEHOODS COUNTDOWN . . . . . DAVID HAGBERG . . . XLNT TERRORIST POSS. NUKE WAR VITAL SIGNS . . . . ROBIN COOK . . . XLNT FERTILITY CLINIC SCAM THE PRESENCE . . .JOHN SAUL . . . XLNT SEED 15MIL OLD FOR HUMAN RACE
sorry bout the caps,
but I pasted it from excel,and durned if I wanna type it allover again,
:shrug:
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av8rdave
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Wed Feb-18-04 11:33 AM
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34. There are so many great ones...my favorites: |
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Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee (An Indian History of the American West)(Dee Brown)
Ghost Rider (Neal Peart)
Last Chance to See (Douglas Adams)
Six Not So Easy Pieces (Richard Feynman)
The Pleasure of Finding Things Out (Richard Feynman)
A River Runs Through It (Norman MacLean)
Fate is the Hunter (Ernest K. Gann)
There are lots of other favorites of mine, but those are the first that come to mind.
av8rdave
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BurtWorm
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Wed Feb-18-04 12:23 PM
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35. "An African in Greenland" by Tete-Michel Kpomassie |
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The title says it all. It's a great adventure story, a great coming of age story, a great travel story, and it's all true.
Other favorite nonfiction books I've read recently:
"The Metaphysical Club," by Louis Menand. An excellent intellectual history of the US between the Civil War and World War I.
"American Aurora," by Richard Rosenfeld. An unusual history of the chaotic period of John Adams' presidency, when the factionalization of American political discourse became established.
"Cicero," by Anthony Everitt. A very good summary of the end of the Roman Republic as well as a life of Cicero, the last Roman Republican.
"The Clinton Wars," by Sidney Blumenthal. A partisan, but I think fair, take on the second Clinton term, including, of course, impeachment. Very compellingly written, too.
Other all-time favorites:
"The Mysterious William Shakespeare," by Charlton Ogburn. A devastating critique of the Stratford theory of Shakespeare's identity, and a brilliant defense of the Oxford theory.
"The Autobiography of Benvenuto Cellini." Probably more ficititious than he'd want us to know. It was a lot of fun to read.
"The Voyage of the Beagle," Charles Darwin. Charming natural and personal history.
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noonwitch
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Wed Feb-18-04 12:40 PM
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36. "Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil" |
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The book is so much better than the movie.
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geniph
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Wed Feb-18-04 04:26 PM
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40. All of Roland Huntford's biographies of explorers |
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He's done flawless, incomparable biographies of Shackleton, Nansen, Scott & Amundsen...the man is one of the best biographers of polar explorers imaginable.
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Westegg
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Wed Feb-18-04 04:59 PM
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41. "O, Albany" by William Kennedy, and... |
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..."The Armies of the Night" by Norman Mailer.
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HEyHEY
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Wed Feb-18-04 05:11 PM
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42. Black Like me, My war gone by: I miss it so, Pappillion, Angela's ashes |
Greyskye
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Wed Feb-18-04 05:13 PM
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43. Ain't Nobodys Business If You Do: The Absurdity of Consensual Crimes... |
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Ain't Nobodys Business If You Do: The Absurdity of Consensual Crimes in Our Free Country by: Peter McWilliams Fantastic book, currently available for less than $10, or you can read it online for free! http://www.mcwilliams.com/books/books/aint/toc.htm
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slackdude
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Wed Feb-18-04 06:11 PM
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47. Great book! Peter McWilliams R.I.P. |
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You know that he died because a judge refused him medical marijuana and he choked on his vomit.
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Greyskye
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Wed Feb-18-04 06:32 PM
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49. Yeah, the irony is sickening |
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This is a book that I bought multiple copies of in hardcover to give out as gifts. I think I need to stock up on the trade paperback editions and do that again! It never hurts to have more of these books in circulation, and it's a small enough honor to the estate of a great American.
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Sequoia
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Wed Feb-18-04 06:05 PM
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44. "Worlds in Collison" by Immanuel Velikovsky |
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Edited on Wed Feb-18-04 06:10 PM by Sequoia
Also "The Secret Knowledge of Water" by Craig Childs (just wonderful)
"The Food of the Gods" (excellent!)
"The Chalice and the Blade".
I'm stopping now.
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mobuto
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Wed Feb-18-04 06:12 PM
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48. Worlds in Collision? LOL |
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The category was non-fiction.
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slackdude
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Wed Feb-18-04 06:10 PM
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Miles Davis' autobiography. It has some of the funniest stories about old jazz guys doing crazy stuff, and Miles managed to use the word "motherfucker" in new and exciting ways. My favorite story though is how during his electric period he would play shows at the Filmore but would always show up late if he was supposed to go on before the Steve Miller Band because he refused to open for "that no-talent motherfucker."
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Red_Storm
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Thu Feb-19-04 08:25 AM
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i've read it so many times and always enjoy it.......it's more than a book, it's Miles talking to you in an endless conversation.....
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mobuto
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Wed Feb-18-04 11:55 PM
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50. The Power Broker: Robert Moses and the Fall of New York |
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by Robert Caro, who's also written the excellent multivolume (up to three books now) biography of LBJ.
Its a fascinating book on so many levels. You learn about why New York is the way it is and how it got that way, how decisions are made in bureacracy, how power is wielded, and you get some of the greatest stories ever told.
The book itself is worth the vignette about how Vincent R. Impellitteri became Mayor of the City of New York. As I remember, for the election, Tammany had a Jew from the Bronx for Comptroller, an Irishman from Brooklyn for Mayor, and to round out the ethnic/borough balance, they needed an Italian from Manhattan for Deputy Mayor. But they couldn't think of any who weren't objectionable. So they looked in a directory of Tammany Democrats, found a man who's name sounded impeccably Italian, and called him up. He was Vincent R. Impelliterri and he had been the secretary for a Judge named Schmuck for 30 years. They asked him if he wanted to be deputy mayor and he said sure.
Mayor O'Dwyer had to resign in a scandal, and the rest is history.
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AlFrankenFan
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Thu Feb-19-04 12:00 AM
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Is there such a genre?
hehe
Anything to do with forensics or true crime...no specific favorites.
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Lindacooks
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Thu Feb-19-04 01:03 AM
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More Home Cooking, by Laurie Colwin.
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Endangered Specie
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Thu Feb-19-04 01:13 AM
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55. at the momemt: "Why people believe weird things" |
priller
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Thu Feb-19-04 01:50 AM
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by Robert Hughes. The story of the founding of Australia. By far the best history book I've ever read.
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Mrs. Overall
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Thu Feb-19-04 01:59 AM
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57. Memories, Dreams, and Reflections--Carl Jung's Autobiography |
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Fascinating read and very relieving if you've ever had strange, psychic sorts of things happen to you.
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Kosmos Mariner
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Thu Feb-19-04 02:01 AM
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Demon Haunted World - Carl Sagan
Geography of Nowhere - James Howard Kunstler
Ecology of Fear - Mike Davis
I agree with the previous posts, you should definitely read Sagan. If you want to know why our cities, towns, suburbs, homes and thus our lives, have become increasingly unattached, hollow, anxious, depressing, unfulfilled, etc... read this book. If you want to know why California is what it is, physically and culturally, read Davis. He is the authority on CA, especially SoCal.
:dem:
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Red_Storm
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Thu Feb-19-04 08:45 AM
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60. A Fish In The Water - Mario Vargas Llosa |
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a wonderful memoir about his life and also a really fascinating account of his campaign for the presidency of Peru back in 1990....a brilliant book.....
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Scairp
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Thu Feb-19-04 08:48 AM
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61. I read Mia Farrow's memoirs |
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"What Falls Away". I was blown away by how wonderful a writer she is. I also came away thoroughly convinced that Woody Allen is indeed a child molester. Lots of stuff in her book about that situation that the public never heard. She is a strong woman who has had a fascinating life.
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