Good books you've just read

Palomar · 2003-11-24 13:20:33

Snow Crash is mostly about a hacker and a VR world. Great for Geeks and lovers of Cyberpunk. Probably not quite ready for middle america
I would reccomend, over Snow Crash, The Diamond Age.
It's about Nanotechnology, AI, and fun stuff like that.

*Alt2War:

Thank you for the additional information. Based on what you've said about the book, I think it's probably not "for me." I probably couldn't make heads or tails of it. So thank you for the notice.

Well, I've got my 3 calendars for 2004. Yep, 3 of them. I guess I'm more of an eclectic than I thought (I usually buy only 1 calendar for my office). The first I picked up about a month ago, devoted to Lighthouses (I collect lighthouse knick-knacks occasionally). Then Saturday night I saw a calendar devoted to the late Brandon Lee [1965 - 1993] in his portrayal of Eric Draven in the 1993 film "The Crow." And today another calendar caught my attention: French Kitty. Not because it's French; could be Italian Kitty or Swedish Kitty. Very artsy and sophisticated, yet funky; ageless. Late 1960s-style artwork with a wild but compatible blend of colors: Raspberry, chartreuse, light olive, blue, purple, and pink. Complete with flower-power style motifs, etc. Kitty sipping a cocktail under a beach umbrella by the Pyramids; Kitty zipping past the Eiffel Tower with her boyfriend on his scooter...I think she's the female feline answer to James Bond.

So I've got lighthouses, goth, and 1960s style psychadelic/flowerchild featuring a cat. Hmmmmm.

Looks like my husband'll have to pound 2 additional nails in the wall for my calendars.

--Cindy

Rxke · 2003-11-24 13:56:45

It was either Gibson or Stephenson that co-authored a book, cyberpunk in the 18th century.
Basicly its a "What if computers were invented and as widespreadly used as today in the Victorian Era"
You may find it interesting, but I could not stomach to finish the book myself.

Read that... 'Stoomvlinder' in Dutch, (printed by Meulenhoff SF) so must be something like steam butterfly(?)

Was written by Gibson and Stephenson, IIRC...

(Edited: actually, it's 'The Difference Engine' in English, and it's by Gibson and Bruce Sterling)

Lord Byron, Lady Ada, etc... Charles Babbage's 'difference engine' that got really built and used by the authorities... (for the non- computer freaks: it was the first 'modern' computer, with central processing, memory etc... working totally mechanical. Some years ago English engineers built a part of it for real, and it works, but then (Victorian age) it was considered too expensive to build...)

Nice idea for a parallel history, but i agree, not the best book i ever read...

clark · 2003-11-24 14:00:14

I got into a bit of a Chuck Palahniuk mood, and ended up reading several of his books. None of them Fight Club, but I am told that it is good.

I suggest you try any of his books, as each does a good job of story telling, but you may tire of hiswriting style if you read them all (he seems to be caught up in his own voice to the detriment of story development). Each story is different, but it still feels the same. A bit like Hemmingway, but a bit more vulgar.

I just read Lullaby, which is about a poem, a reporter, and the end of the world, not to mention a love story that begins with a woman, and ends with an old grizzled sherrif.

I've read Choke, which is about a kidnapped kid struggling with a mesiah complex and revelations about his mother.

I've read Invisible Monsters, which is about a reformed cult member, (can you say 'trend' ) who rises too fast, falls even faster, all the whil;e trying not to be killed by some killer out to kill the last living members of the cult. Deals with slavery too, added bonus!

Mr. P's style is truly mesmerizing, but don't sit down and read them all at the same time, or close together. It's like reading the same story, just with different lingo.

Palomar · 2003-11-29 15:56:37

Cambridge Encyclopedia of the Sun

*I ordered this book today. The links provides information on book contents, author, etc. This month's issue of "Astronomy" magazine featured the extensive astronomy library of a man; this was one of two books he recommended about the sun.

--Cindy [<--megaheliophile]

Josh Cryer · 2003-11-30 06:21:15

I reread True Names by Verner Vinge yesterday, while waiting for everyone to "get ready." (It's a rather small book.)

There are several problems with this book though. Firstly, there is no rational isomorphic mapping between the "magic" of the Other Plain, and programs or software that the Other Plain operates on. There exists an "unlock secret door" spell, and we're to beleive that it somehow has code which will open a backdoor into a government installation? This brings us to the second problem; the whole system seems rather insecure. All I have to do is get a few good "spells" (ie, in this world we would call them hack-kits, things "script kiddies" use rather than creating themselves), and I can access anywhere in the system? This seems rather highly unlikely.

I do like the concept of magic, though. But I believe 'real' magic is inherently incomprehensible, and doesn't have an isomorphic counterpart in reality. I think Vinge invokes magic because he wants to simplify his story (only in several points does he explain the technologies). But I don't think it has any basis in reality. Especially since a future system such as the Other Plain will be nearly unhackable (the only 'hacks' which are rather impossible to overcome are "identity hacks"; someone steals your password, or takes over your computer while you're not looking- but these are generally not considered hacks). Magic would be a novelity in such a plain, it wouldn't be a way to gain power in the real world.

dicktice · 2003-11-30 09:55:51

I just read "The Secret of Life" by British author Paul McAuley. It's written in the present tense, which I find is a drag, but where his protagonist is experiencing e.g. airship travel to, and afterwards wheeled rover travel across the north pole, the present-tense writing really works. The early period of Mars settlement is depicted so realistically I felt not much was left to experience (!) The story presents a strong cautionary theme regarding Mars sample and return imagined consequences. Worth reading for the descriptions alone in the half dealing with exploring the surface of Mars a decade or so after the first landing.

Palomar · 2003-12-04 07:11:22

*I picked up _Parallel Universes: The Search for Other Worlds_ at my local Barnes & Noble last evening.

Its author is Fred Alan Wolf (who also wrote _Taking the Quantum Leap_, among others).

"...physicist FA Wolf explores the startling concept of parallell universes -- worlds that resemble and perhaps even duplicate our own -- and puts a refreshing and illuminating spin on the complex theories challenging our perceptions of the universe. Through such lively examples as a superspace theater and zero-time ghosts (ooooh, that sounds really cool, whatever it is, teehee), Wolf deftly guides the reader through the paradoxes of today's physics (written for the general reader) to explore a realm of scientific speculation in which black holes are gateways of information between universes, and alter egos spring into existence at the flip of a coin.

Wolf explores a future when time travelers will make history -- and alter the past (?? ) while testing Earth's first time machine; when lucid dreaming and schizophrenia may mark the overlap of parallel universes..."

That's a partial quote from the back of the book. I couldn't pass it up.

--Cindy

Byron · 2003-12-06 07:26:26

Wolf explores a future when time travelers will make history -- and alter the past (?? ) while testing Earth's first time machine; when lucid dreaming and schizophrenia may mark the overlap of parallel universes..."

My only question about time travel is why aren't we seeing all these people coming in from the future, urging us to do things the "right" way?? (as hindsight is always 20/20...lol.) Same thing with other intelligent races in our galaxy...why aren't we seeing any kind of evidence of space-faring civilizations out there?

But I'd love to have a copy of that book, though...it sounds very, very interesting...

B

Palomar · 2003-12-06 08:02:42

Wolf explores a future when time travelers will make history -- and alter the past (?? ) while testing Earth's first time machine; when lucid dreaming and schizophrenia may mark the overlap of parallel universes..."

My only question about time travel is why aren't we seeing all these people coming in from the future, urging us to do things the "right" way?? (as hindsight is always 20/20...lol.) Same thing with other intelligent races in our galaxy...why aren't we seeing any kind of evidence of space-faring civilizations out there?
But I'd love to have a copy of that book, though...it sounds very, very interesting...
B

*Well, I hope you get a copy. I had a hard time putting it down last night; I find Mr. Wolf easier to understand than Stephen Hawking. Wolf doesn't rely much on illustrations, either. He very excellently uses analogies to explain the theories, has a large glossary at the rear of the book, etc. Just reading the glossary alone is absorbing.

This is just one of the books he has authored; he has a PhD as well.

I can't wait to get to the "zero-time ghosts" chapter...that's really got me intrigued.

--Cindy

Josh Cryer · 2003-12-06 15:06:22

Verner Vinge: Marooned In Realtime.

It's about humans in the future who have a technology called "bobbles," which allow them to be encased into an invincible perfectly reflective spherical field that exists for a given time period. People use these "bobbles" to 'jump ahead' into the future.

I have a million qualms with this book, far more than I had with True Names. For instance, in the future, the most powerful characters are able to create anything from the 20th century, but they cannot recreate their own technologies. Well, I guess I can see this happening partially, but why can't they simply build factories that build the technologies they need? Why must they start from the very bottom and work their way up again? They're near the top of the technological ladder! Instead, they make the "low-techs" work so that the highest level technology is recreated again (despite the fact that they have hundreds of autonomous robots capable of doing a lot of things).

It's still an interesting read, but I dunno.

Palomar · 2003-12-13 12:21:53

*_Tom Paine: America's Godfather_, by W.E. Woodward

The book is out of print (must buy used).

It's an excellent, solid biography of Paine and his tireless efforts on behalf of humanitarianism, liberty, and truth. Paine was the first person in America (shortly after his immigration from England) to boldly state -- in print (a newspaper) -- his anti-slavery sentiments; he was absolutely opposed to slavery and the slave trade, and condemned it.

He was also pro-women's rights. He was also an advocate for the ethical and humane treatment of animals. And much more.

Of all U.S. Founders, Paine rates as the greatest, in my opinion (with Benjamin Franklin on Paine's heels). Too bad more of America's democratic ideas weren't built on the Paine models; we'd likely be better off, if they had been.

I've summarized quite a bit of information about Paine from this book in posts at my "Age of Voltaire" group.

--Cindy

P.S.: Contrary to the common misunderstanding, Paine was not an atheist. He was a Deist; he repeatedly reaffirmed his Deistic sentiments and thoughts in his writings.

dickbill · 2003-12-13 13:31:22

P.S.: Contrary to the common misunderstanding, Paine was not an atheist. He was a Deist; he repeatedly reaffirmed his Deistic sentiments and thoughts in his writings.

what's a deist exactly ?

A note about the MArs trilogy of KSR, I feel the author wrote it with the clear intention to make a movie scenario because as a book, it contains many unnecessary substories which don't make much sense, in a book, but which make a lot of sense if you want to make a big trilogy a la "lords of the rings".

I even think that the storyline in the Mars trilogy is more flexible and easily adaptable to the cinema than Dune or LOR, you can remove or add a lot of stuff without changing the big picture:the humankind settlement on Mars.

I just hope that future cinema adaptations will be as good as for LOR, and I have no doubt that after the rovers come this winter, the public interest for Mars will be stimulated.

Palomar · 2003-12-13 13:53:13

P.S.: Contrary to the common misunderstanding, Paine was not an atheist. He was a Deist; he repeatedly reaffirmed his Deistic sentiments and thoughts in his writings.
what's a deist exactly ?

*As per Paine's time, it generally (based on my studies) meant a belief in a Supreme Being as creator of the universe and the physical laws therein ("The Great Clockmaker").

Deists rejected the idea of miracles (God cannot break physical rules which he established). Paine and others expressed admiration for the person of Jesus Christ and his teachings but did not believe Christ was divine (Benjamin Franklin was more agnostic regarding that particular).

They upheld the use of Reason, critical thinking, etc., as the way to arrive at/discover truths. They also believed observing nature could lead to discovering truth.

Here are a few web sites (disclaimer: these -don't- necessarily reflect my own views; I'm an agnostic. I'm merely referring these in answer to dickbill's question):

http://www.deism.com (Might offend some...just a fair warning...)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deism

--Cindy

Echus_Chasma · 2003-12-13 23:01:56

Not so much a book but a very interesting, must read article on environmental fanatics and stuff like that. Nice bit of indirect Greenpeace bashing.

It's a very nice site actually - Indymedia, I hadn't heard of it before now, has anyone else heard of it?

Remarks to the Commonwealth Club by Michael Crichton

clark · 2003-12-15 09:47:40

Galatea 2.2
by Richard Powers

If you're into AI, you may like this... or may not. The author is a MacArthur fellow (an award for very smart people), and the imagery is just incredible.

Here is the Amazon description:

After several years abroad, novelist Richard Powers -- the fictional protagonist of the story -- returns to America and accepts the position of Humanist-in-Residence at the enormous and prestigious Center for the Study of Advanced Sciences. There, he meets Philip Lentz, an outspoken neurologist intent on creating a model of the human brain with computer-based neural networks, and together they embark on an outlandishly ambitious project -- to teach the neural net English literature so that it can pass a difficult master's exam.
As their experiment progresses, their brain-child absorbs more and more information, gradually becoming increasingly worldly. Soon, it demands to know its name, sex, race and reason for existing. Meanwhile, this literary crash course sparks in Powers a parallel awakening, and he begins a reconsideration of his chosen profession, his decade-long, failed relationship with a former pupil and his obsession with the master's candidate against whom his cybernetic pupil is slated to compete.

My 2 cents:
However, the story deals with a bet, lost love, self awareness (not of the computer), and the struggle for definition of the soul. Oh yeah, and writers block.

Bill White · 2003-12-15 10:17:59

Galatea 2.2
by Richard Powers
If you're into AI, you may like this... or may not. The author is a MacArthur fellow (an award for very smart people), and the imagery is just incredible.
Here is the Amazon description:
After several years abroad, novelist Richard Powers -- the fictional protagonist of the story -- returns to America and accepts the position of Humanist-in-Residence at the enormous and prestigious Center for the Study of Advanced Sciences. There, he meets Philip Lentz, an outspoken neurologist intent on creating a model of the human brain with computer-based neural networks, and together they embark on an outlandishly ambitious project -- to teach the neural net English literature so that it can pass a difficult master's exam.
As their experiment progresses, their brain-child absorbs more and more information, gradually becoming increasingly worldly. Soon, it demands to know its name, sex, race and reason for existing. Meanwhile, this literary crash course sparks in Powers a parallel awakening, and he begins a reconsideration of his chosen profession, his decade-long, failed relationship with a former pupil and his obsession with the master's candidate against whom his cybernetic pupil is slated to compete.
My 2 cents:
However, the story deals with a bet, lost love, self awareness (not of the computer), and the struggle for definition of the soul. Oh yeah, and writers block.

Jeez - good thing I have Amazon's OneClick

Bill White · 2003-12-27 13:04:28

Galatea 2.2
by Richard Powers
If you're into AI, you may like this... or may not. The author is a MacArthur fellow (an award for very smart people), and the imagery is just incredible.
Here is the Amazon description:
After several years abroad, novelist Richard Powers -- the fictional protagonist of the story -- returns to America and accepts the position of Humanist-in-Residence at the enormous and prestigious Center for the Study of Advanced Sciences. There, he meets Philip Lentz, an outspoken neurologist intent on creating a model of the human brain with computer-based neural networks, and together they embark on an outlandishly ambitious project -- to teach the neural net English literature so that it can pass a difficult master's exam.
As their experiment progresses, their brain-child absorbs more and more information, gradually becoming increasingly worldly. Soon, it demands to know its name, sex, race and reason for existing. Meanwhile, this literary crash course sparks in Powers a parallel awakening, and he begins a reconsideration of his chosen profession, his decade-long, failed relationship with a former pupil and his obsession with the master's candidate against whom his cybernetic pupil is slated to compete.
My 2 cents:
However, the story deals with a bet, lost love, self awareness (not of the computer), and the struggle for definition of the soul. Oh yeah, and writers block.
Jeez - good thing I have Amazon's OneClick

Bought it. Read it. Good choice.

Actually, Galatea 2.2 is rather like literary Jagermeister - - sometimes hard to swallow but very, very good for the literary digestion. For me this book may prove a sure-fire cure for writer's block since cool ideas jump out of nearly every paragraph. Maybe its time to OneClick Powers other books, as a Christmas present to myself.

One of my favorite Powers throwaway lines (paraphrased) . . .

A professor introduces his 17 year old daughter to a famous novelist.

"I'd like you to meet my daughter, she writes poetry."

"Dad! I do nothing of the sort, I write song lyrics!"

Too human, IMHO, waaay too human.

= = =

PS - The "university" where the novel is set is a blend of Northwestern, the University of Chicago and the University of Illinois, and includes a vignette set in a campus dive in Champaign/Urbana which features sticky floors, 24 ounce Becks' Bomber beer and the world's best fried fish sandwiches.

I have eaten there myself.

Mad Grad Student · 2003-12-27 19:35:31

An excellent book I just recieved for Christmas that should appeal to this audience is Beyond. It's essentially a collection of the most spectacular photos ever taken of eight of the planets in the solar system and the sun. Keeping with the title, every photo except one was taken by a robotic explorer, some of which include Voyager, Galileo, the Vikings, and the Mariners. Something that this audience should enjoy is that the Mars section dominates the book, with dozens of pictures from MGS, Mars Odyssey, and the Vikings of the Valles Marineris, sand dunes, and dry channels (Or perhaps cannals? ).

The only major complaint I have with the book is the lack of pictures from landers, which totals to two, I believe. Yes, the MGS and Mars Odyssey photos are breathtaking, but the Vikings landed as well as orbited, something you might overlook from reading it. It also would have been cool to see the surface of Venus and the Moon, but there's nothing from the Venera, Surveyor, Luna or Lunkhod missions. Additionally, there are three pages devoted to Uranus, why (so few, I mean)?

I hope that or the nasty price won't discourage you from checking out this book. I don't know of any better or more concise collection of actual photos of our fellow planets, definately something you should look into if it interests you.

clark · 2003-12-30 10:44:52

Bought it. Read it. Good choice.

Thanks, but the book was recommended to me by another, whose recommendations are always spot on. I'm glad you liked it Bill!

Actually, Galatea 2.2 is rather like literary Jagermeister - - sometimes hard to swallow but very, very good for the literary digestion.

Jagermeister? :laugh: Good allusion, see, the book has already paid off in spades! It was difficult to get through some of the flashbacks... it became a bit repetitive for me. The real enjoyment for me was with the events on campus and that 'train'.

For me this book may prove a sure-fire cure for writer's block since cool ideas jump out of nearly every paragraph.

I loved the way his character would spin new and intricate stories at the drop of a hat. He has a way of sucking you into the characterization, no?

PS - The "university" where the novel is set is a blend of Northwestern, the University of Chicago and the University of Illinois, and includes a vignette set in a campus dive in Champaign/Urbana which features sticky floors, 24 ounce Becks' Bomber beer and the world's best fried fish sandwiches.

Don't all college bars have sticky floors? I think it's a requirement.

I'm in the process of reading A Confederacy of Dunces
by John Kennedy Toole (guy won a Pulitzer for this one, an award for very good writing ):laugh:

http://www.amazon.com/exec....2087297

Usually this type of story isn't my cup of tea (I never cared much for Don Quixote after all), but sometimes a good comedy is just what you need. If interested, I'll let you know if it's worth the read.

Bill White · 2004-01-16 16:10:03

My new Edith Grossman translation of Don Quixote just arrived a few minutes ago. Thank you Amazon.com

Also, Bob Zubrin's satire The Holy Land.

Anyone else read the latter yet?

wgc · 2004-01-16 18:50:28

Its not new but Buzz Aldrins, ecounter with Tiber, he comes pretty close to whats happening today. It even starts with a shuttle crash.

Palomar · 2004-01-17 09:04:52

*I've just finished reading _Diderot's Selected Writings_, which was selected and edited by Mr. Lester G. Crocker.

Denis Diderot was an 18th century French philosopher, and quite a bit of a "loose cannon" as Enlightenment-era philosophers went. He recognized the value of reason, but also (equally) that of the passions. He was a multifaceted, energetic man; often referred to as "the incendiary philosophe"...an original thinker if ever there was one. Voltaire called him "Pantophilus," because Diderot's restless curiosity drove him to intensively study just about everything. He was particularly interested in medicine, and translated a medical reference book from English into French. Of all Enlightenment philosophers, only Diderot had a degree.

The book (approximately 320 pages) contains quotes from his unpublished writings, his novels (some of them published only after his death in 1784 because of censorship issues), etc. His best-seller (to date) is "The Indiscreet Jewels" -- a somewhat scandalous (for its time) erotic novel.

Diderot was also the editor of The Encyclopedia (refer to link below), and wrote many articles for it. He and his friends also went through quite a bit of hell (censorship issues, etc.) in trying to put "l'Encyclopedie" together.

[http://www.visitvoltaire.com/v_diderot.htm]http://www.visitvoltaire.com/v_diderot.htm

He was described as "bohemian," and enjoyed frequent outings to coffee houses with "the guys." Very free-spirited. He was also a devoted father who cried when his only child, Angelique, was married; as a child, he would join in playing games with her like hopscotch. He wrote of the joys of fatherhood.

Here are a few samples from the book (which I shared previously at my Yahoo! group):

"If man was made only to plow and reap, to eat and sell, then it is
no great matter. But it seems to me that a being capable of feeling
was intended to achieve happiness through all his thoughts. Is there
any reason for setting a limit to the mind and senses and for saying
to a man: 'You shall think only thus far; you shall feel only thus
far'? I believe that this kind of philosophy tends to keep man in a
state of brutishness, and to restrict his pleasures and happiness in
a way quite contrary to his nature.

Any philosophy that goes against human nature is absurd, as is all
legislation that continually forces the citizen to sacrifice his own
tastes and happiness to the good of society. I want society to be
happy, but I also wish to be happy myself, and there are as many ways
of being happy as there are individuals."

"To attempt the destruction of our passions is the height of folly. What a noble aim is that of the zealot who tortures himself like a madman in order to desire nothing, love nothing, feel nothing and who, if he succeeded, would end up a complete monster!"

If you're interested in Denis Diderot, try to obtain this book (out of print; check bookfinder.com). It gives a very wide and generous "swath" of his works. He is -never- boring.

--Cindy

Palomar · 2004-01-31 12:36:17

*I'm nearly finished reading the 2-volume biography of Voltaire by Mr. Georg Brandes...entitled _Voltaire_ (what else?).

The book covers the entire life of Voltaire including many anecdotal events. Voltaire's professional achievements, extensive humanitarian efforts, travels, adoption of two orphans, theater work, faults (he didn't have too many of those, though...<wink>), love interests, generosities (he was extremely generous; very kind-hearted), friendships (with "average folk" to royalty) and enmities, etc., etc., are all discussed frankly. I especially enjoy the elderly Voltaire as "Patriarch of Ferney" -- his truly golden years.

***

Here are some excerpts from visitors to Voltaire's home; these are quoted from my Yahoo! group (previous comments there made by me are in brackets):

Prince Charles Joseph de Ligne described Voltaire's style of dress:

On week days Voltaire wore gray shoes, iron-gray
stockings, a wide jacket of silk, a great wig and a little black
velvet cap [he must have looked adorable with that jaunty little cap
perched atop that large wig!]; on Sundays Voltaire wore a neat
reddish-brown coat -- without ruffles -- trousers and vest to match,
or a jacket with wide tails, gold-trimmed with wavy braid and wide
lace-cuffs which reached to the fingertips.

From the prince's diary:

"He was now writer, now Courtier of Louis XIV's Court, then again
gentleman of the best society...The best thing I could do during my
stay was not to try to be entertaining or witty myself, but to induce
him to talk. I was eight days at his house, and I wish I could
recall the subline, honest, beautiful things that escaped him one
after another. But this is impossible. I laughed or I admired; but
I was as though in a continual ecstasy. Everything about him, even
his mistakes, his hobbies, his lack of appreciation of the fine arts
[Apparently he and Charles differed as to the definition of "fine
arts"!], his moods, his pretentions to being what he could not be
[IMO, this probably refers to the rigid class castes of the time; in
spite of Voltaire's wealth and celebrated achievements, he was born
of the middle-class, as Charles well knew], as well as what he really
was -- everything he did was delightful, new, charming and
unexpected. He would like to be considered an excellent statesman
and a great pedant, this last to such a degree that he would be
boring...He had a very high opinion of the English constitution. I
recall saying to him: 'Monsieur de Voltaire, don't forget the power
that maintains it: the ocean; without it, the constitution would not
stand.'"

***

Chevalier de Boufflers:

"You have no idea of the lavish way in which Voltaire spends and
gives away his money. He brings happiness to his neighborhood, and is as good a patriarch
as he is a poet. If he were to be divided and I were to see on one
side the man whom I read, and on the other the one whom I know in
daily life, I would not know which to choose. His publishers may do
whatever they wish -- he is and remains himself, the best edition of
his books. The house is delightful, the location excellent, the food
choice, and my rooms magnificent."

And also, writing to his mother: "You cannot imagine how pleasant he
is in his home; he would be the best old man in the world were he not
the greatest man alive."

***

The book also relates, in detail, the cases of the Calas and Sirvens families (write me privately for information on that, or check Google; one letter pertaining to his assistance to these families can be found in the letters section of the Voltaire Society of America -- link provided below).

A truly exceptional human being:

--Cindy

P.S.: For additional information about Voltaire:

[http://humanities.uchicago.edu/homes/VSA/]Voltaire Society of America

[http://www.visitvoltaire.com/]Visit Voltaire

[http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ageofvoltaire/]Age of Voltaire

Palomar · 2004-03-05 08:22:09

*More books, more books!

Recent purchases from Barnes & Noble:

"Mrs. Dalloway" and "Between the Acts," by Virginia Woolf.

"The Return of the Primitive, the Anti-Industrial Revolution," by Ayn Rand.

"The Philosophical Dictionary," Voltaire (he was -so- adorable).

And an unusual purchase for me:

"The Pirate Hunter: The True Story of Captain Kidd," by Richard Zacks. This book was one of Time Magazine's Best Books of 2002. Turns out ol' Capt. Kidd wasn't a pirate...he was a pirate -hunter-, which activities started in 1690. I guess the combination of his life's story occurring at that period and the fact that Johnny Depp looked so gorgeous with his eyeliner and swishy pirate costume in "Pirates of the Caribbean" got me hooked. It looks like a fantastic read.

--Cindy

Rxke · 2004-03-08 16:20:18

I finally got around reading The Martian Chronicles...

Initially i thought it was 'too old' (I'm more the hard-tech SF kind of reader) But Bradbury gets to you, the guys a genius, this is more than about Mars. :up:

New Mars Forums

Announcement

#76 2003-11-24 13:20:33

Re: Good books you've just read

#77 2003-11-24 13:56:45

Re: Good books you've just read

#78 2003-11-24 14:00:14

Re: Good books you've just read

#79 2003-11-29 15:56:37

Re: Good books you've just read

#80 2003-11-30 06:21:15

Re: Good books you've just read

#81 2003-11-30 09:55:51

Re: Good books you've just read

#82 2003-12-04 07:11:22

Re: Good books you've just read

#83 2003-12-06 07:26:26

Re: Good books you've just read

#84 2003-12-06 08:02:42

Re: Good books you've just read

#85 2003-12-06 15:06:22

Re: Good books you've just read

#86 2003-12-13 12:21:53

Re: Good books you've just read

#87 2003-12-13 13:31:22

Re: Good books you've just read

#88 2003-12-13 13:53:13

Re: Good books you've just read

#89 2003-12-13 23:01:56

Re: Good books you've just read

#90 2003-12-15 09:47:40

Re: Good books you've just read

#91 2003-12-15 10:17:59

Re: Good books you've just read

#92 2003-12-27 13:04:28

Re: Good books you've just read

#93 2003-12-27 19:35:31

Re: Good books you've just read

#94 2003-12-30 10:44:52

Re: Good books you've just read

#95 2004-01-16 16:10:03

Re: Good books you've just read

#96 2004-01-16 18:50:28

Re: Good books you've just read

#97 2004-01-17 09:04:52

Re: Good books you've just read

#98 2004-01-31 12:36:17

Re: Good books you've just read

#99 2004-03-05 08:22:09

Re: Good books you've just read

#100 2004-03-08 16:20:18

Re: Good books you've just read

Board footer