What are you reading right now?

[SPARKSFLY666]

@corlene I saw the Trailer for  the Michael Bay movie the other day the books been on my list. I'm on the road for the next four weeks or so and will surely miss the movie in theaters let me know if you see it. Thanks for the recommendation!

[x1x1]

Bout to start reading Schizo by Nic Scheff (author of Tweak)

[Zoops]

Currently, I'm reading a book that I got from the library's "Virginia" section, called "The Stronghold: A Story of the Historic Northern Neck of Virginia and its People," by Miriam Haynie.

Nark, you'd like this book, as it contains many descriptions of daily life in this part of the colony of Virginia during the 1600's and 1700's. The Northern Neck (the region where I live now) is a peninsula formed by the Potomac river on its North side, the Rappahannock river on its South, and the Chesapeake bay on the East. As early as the mid-1600s, many people were living and working here, and had lots of dealings with the native peoples. It's quite fascinating to me to hear of places right in my little part of town being mentioned back almost 400 years ago.

Before the Northern Neck book, I read a British publication, "Smoking Ears and Screaming Teeth," by Trevor Norton. It is a book about all of the advances in science and medicine that were made by people experimenting on themselves. Much of the early work with anesthesia was done by self-experimenters.

On deck is "Pirate Latitudes," by Michael Crichton. He is one of the few fiction writers I truly enjoy reading. This book is obviously about pirates, set in 1665 on and around the island of Jamaica, back when it was a British colony. A British privateer (a government-sanctioned pirate) who raids Spanish ships and steals their gold and silver is the main character, according to the blurb inside the jacket. Different subject matter from the stuff he wrote mostly.

Interesting facts about Michael Crichton: he was a medical doctor and is the only writer to have a #1 TV show (ER), a #1 movie (Jurassic Park) and a #1 book (Disclosure) simultaneously. Truly an achievement worth noting. The guy wrote a LOT a LOT a LOT of books, nearly all of them good. I recommend him highly. In his later (Andromeda Strain and after) novels, he did much research for each, including a bibliography of the scholarly works he consulted at the end of many of them.

Robin Cook, also an MD, writes good medical/thriller-type fiction. A few of his books have been made into movies too. His stuff is a little more and paperback-y than Crichton's, though.

[SPARKSFLY666]

About to start Damien Echols book Life after death and the A.I. Trilogy by William Gibson (Neuromancer, Count Zero, Mona Lisa Overdrive) both have been in my que for a while.

[Zoops]

We had a core member, a great guy I had the pleasure of getting high with in DC several times last Summer, who used the handle "Count Zero" on here and Opiophile before that. RIP, Count (Doug).

The cause of death was never put out there, but we think it was etizolam and either heroin or PST (or both).
Died sitting in a chair reading the newspaper.

[MoeMentim]

^Ugggh, that sucks.^  I recall the username.  Hope that all who were close to him are getting along ok.

I used to be opposed to Kindles & such till I sold all my books for dope .  Since then my eyes have gotten too bad to read most standard size print, so the kindle is a life-saver until I can get some glasses.  In case anyone isn't aware copyrights only last 50 years (I think?) & as such there are tons of legitimately free books on sites like https://www.gutenberg.org/.

  I'm not reading anything specific right now, but I jump around a lot - short stories, essays, something from the Bible most every day, hahaha.  I read a lot of philosophy, mostly the existentialists, I've never read a Russian author I didn't love.  Been poking around in old crime noir stuff- short stories - Fella named Norbert Davis is cool as hell. 

  There's this guy, an Irish Baron, who wrote these brilliant, insanely short stories, sometimes one paragraph, under the name "Lord Dunsany"  Perfect if you're sitting in a waiting room or have 5 or ten minutes to kill - here's one of my favorites:

                                            DEATH AND THE ORANGE

Two dark young men in a foreign southern land sat at a restaurant table with one woman.

And on the woman's plate was a small orange which had an evil laughter in its heart.

And both of the men would be looking at the woman all the time, and they ate little and they drank much.

And the woman was smiling equally at each.

Then the small orange that had the laughter in its heart rolled slowly off the plate on to the floor. And the dark young men both sought for it at once, and they met suddenly beneath the table, and soon they were speaking swift words to one another, and a horror and an impotence came over the Reason of each as she sat helpless at the back of the mind, and the heart of the orange laughed and the woman went on smiling; and Death, who was sitting at another table, tête-à-tête with an old man, rose and came over to listen to the quarrel.


 

[Z]

I'm working my way through Orson Scott Card's Ender Quartet right now.  Currently on Xenocide.  I am also looking at the expanse series since I enjoyed the tv show so much.  I read the first book already, but I haven't started on the others yet.  Sometimes it's hard to stick to one series at a time and I will have a couple on the go at once.

[Narkotikon]

Currently, I'm reading a book that I got from the library's "Virginia" section, called "The Stronghold: A Story of the Historic Northern Neck of Virginia and its People," by Miriam Haynie.

Nark, you'd like this book, as it contains many descriptions of daily life in this part of the colony of Virginia during the 1600's and 1700's. The Northern Neck (the region where I live now) is a peninsula formed by the Potomac river on its North side, the Rappahannock river on its South, and the Chesapeake bay on the East. As early as the mid-1600s, many people were living and working here, and had lots of dealings with the native peoples. It's quite fascinating to me to hear of places right in my little part of town being mentioned back almost 400 years ago.

You're right, I probably would like that book. Good call.

I love history, but unfortunately when it comes to American history, I'm not a fan. Some of the Revolutionary War is interesting to me, but not all. And after that, I'm, eh, not really into it.

One exception is colonial history. I love learning about the colonies, the lives of the colonists, their interactions with the indigenous populations, etc. 

I've never been to Colonial Williamsburg, but I'd like to. I'm sure I'd like it. I have been to Roanoke when I went to North Carolina as a kid. That was interesting.

Speaking of Colonial Virginia and Colonial Williamsburg, my great, great, great, whatever great grandfather emigrated from England to Virginia in 1635 on a ship called George. He settled in an area known then as Rich Neck, which later became known as Middle Plantation, which eventually became colonial Williamsburg.

I don't know much about my family history. I've always wanted to research online to make a family tree, but I'm amotivational and it obviously takes a lot of time. There are sites like Ancestry.com, but people can actually do it for free.

The site familysearch.org is a completely free genealogical site sponsored by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (i.e., the Mormans). It's rooted in their belief in being record keepers, or something like that. You can use the site to access all kinds of census, army, genealogical, historical, etc. records.

As for reading, no books as of late. Several Wikipedia and other online articles though.

[nick]

When money dies-the nightmare of Weimar hyperinflation-Adam Fergusson.

[DreamerOnTheRun]

The Cinder Field.  My friend actually wrote it, takes place at first as a Western kinda and jumps forward to the prohibition era (the same family lineage I believe) but I'd, haven't gotten that far yet.

[Zoops]

When money dies-the nightmare of Weimar hyperinflation-Adam Fergusson.

This is referring to the period after the first world war, before the Nazis took over, when the money was so worthless they had to buy bread with wheelbarrows full of marks?

I hope this doesn't ever happen in the USA, but it seems like our government is doing everything it can to help it come about - printing our way out of a deficit, letting China grab a larger and larger stake in our economy, et cetera ad infinitum et nauseum.

Hope I never live to see the day a loaf of bread is $100.

                                                                    *******
Still trying to finish that book "The Stronghold" about colonial Virginia, but on deck is "Major Pettigrew's Last Stand," by Ellen Simonson. It's the March selection for our church book club.

[QueensVet]

BEHOLD A PALE HORSE by William Cooper

YES!

i have a bunch of banned books, like Kill Without Joy and the Anarchist Cookbook, The Art of Mantrapping, and many others. haha the military was fun, bunch of sick fucks exchanging shit.

i always loved philosophy based books. Hagakure is one of my favorites, filled with quotes from conversations between a master and a student samurai.  Forest Whitaker in Ghost Dog: Way of the Samurai put me onto it, with that sick RZA soundtrack.

[St. Theresa]

I read this book called "on killing" that is supposed to be required reading in the army. It was okay. :/

http://www.amazon.com/On-Killing-Psychological-Learning-Society/dp/0316330116


Two books I really liked that I've recently read is

The philosophers stone by Joseph farrel

And

Confessions of a British spy...here's the pdf

http://www.hakikatkitabevi.com/download/english/14-ConfessionsOf%20ABritishSpy.pdf

[GOOPYBREATH]

I know it was a while ago that the OP was made, but Stephen King writes some of my favorite stories that i've ever read; The Dark Tower series was certainly no exception. Currently i'm reading "The Invention of Murder: How the Victorians Revelled in Death and Detection and Created Modern Crime." As a Kindle user, this is the first book that I've actually purchased in a few years and I was quite surprised when I flipped it over and saw the price. Thankfully, I have a veritable library on my hard drive that didn't cost me a thang!