Post: #576

(01-12-2016 02:41 PM)ed pluribus unum Wrote:  Just finished The Gun Seller by Hugh Laurie and getting into The Power of the Dog by Don Winslow.

How was this?

Post: #577

The War of Art, Steven Pressfield. Re-read this time. Needing motivation.

Post: #578

Just finished The March of Folly by Barbara Tuchman. Excellent book on three main mistakes of nations, against their own self-interest. The last one detailed Vietnam. I was surprised at how early the roots of that war actually were, and was reminded at how much les francaises screwed that country up.

Pulled out Volume 1 of The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire. I read Volume 1 and midway through Volume 2 many years ago, but I didn't have as much appreciation for it as now. I'd love to get through all six volumes. Especially after I tackled the New Testament nearly completely.

Post: #579

Life on the Mississippi - Mark Twain

Post: #580

Thinking Fast and Slow by Daniel Kanheman. I'm only 100 pages in but every chapter I learn something knew about human psychology, biases, or thinking patterns.

Post: #581

Shelby Foote's Civil War Volumes

Post: #582

The War of Art (again)
Anabasis (again)
The Grand Strategy of the Byzantine Empire
Sex at Dawn
Tintin in the Congo

Post: #583

Just bought The Rational Male book from Rollo Tomassi.

Dude is brilliant.

Post: #584

"How to kick ass in lots of shit and be happy at life (not accurate but similar title) by Donald Trump.

Good so far.

Post: #585

On the shortness of life - Seneca

How to fail at almost everything and still win big - Scott Adams

Oglivy On Adverstising

The Black Swan - Nassim Taleb. I have been reading this one very slowly over the past few months.

Post: #586

The Lost cities of Africa by Basil Davidson.

Post: #587

"What to say when you talk to yourself"

I'm going to make time to post reviews of the books I've read in the last few months.

Post: #588

Charlemagne, the Great Adventure by Derek Wilson.

Post: #589

The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas.

It's bonafide dope.

Post: #590

Has anyone read Arthur Kemp March if th Titans? It is free on the net. What did you think?

Post: #591

Christopher Hitchens, Hitch-22. Even allowing for the fact Hitchens turned from the Left to support the Right later in life, so far the book is basically a long, pretentious SJW forum post, made bearable only by the occasional spice of a classical reference from morose dead poets like W.H. Auden and T.S. Eliot (and the odd chuckleworthy phrase). Looks like Hitchens carried around his brutal public school education as a chip on his shoulder a lot longer than most rational men do, as well as his hatred of religion.

Post: #592

The way of the superior man, by David Deida.

Halfway done. Interesting insights, but very repetitive. I think I'll just skim through the second half.

Post: #593

Scholastic Metaphysics: An Contemporary Introduction by Edward Feser. This guy is my favorite contemporary philosopher. It was through him that I started getting interested in scholastic medieval philosophy via his book The Last Superstition which I've checked out from the library at least 4 times now. For the longest time I bought the standard line that medieval philosophy had nothing to offer and was nothing more then an abstract intellectual wank fest which is personified in the constant mocking of the "how many angels can dance on the pin head of a needle" question. Of course, I just assumed this without bothered to studying it myself and was basing my opinions on the opinions of what other people had said about medieval philosophy. I wouldn't be surprised if these people never actually studied medieval philosophy themselves either and were basing their opinions on what other people had written about it, much as I did.

Post: #594

Hilarious book called ''Look Who's Back'' by Timur Vermes. It's about Adolf Hitler waking up suddenly in present day Berlin and trying to adjust to 21st century world. Book was an immediate best seller in Germany and apparently there's a movie on the way. I think someone mentioned on the Migrant Invasion -thread that when the actor was walking the streets of Berlin dressed as Hitler he was disturbed by the fact that folks cheered at him and wanted to have pictures with him, etc.

Post: #595

(01-19-2016 03:39 PM)DarianFrey Wrote:  The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas.

It's bonafide dope.

Been on my list for a while - maybe I'll bump it up higher now.

Post: #596

Finally got around to reading The Odyssey; really reading it, not like I did in high school. It's no wonder why this book is a pillar of our civilization. Every line is full of wisdom and every stanza could have its own book fleshing out the ideas within them.

Also, I just started Trump's Art of the Deal. I'm only two chapters in but have already taken so many notes and gotten so much critical information. Trump knows what he's doing.

Post: #597

Mugabe by Martin Meredith.

Post: #598

An impressively well done German translation of the Daodejing by Laozi.

Post: #599

Currently reading two books at the moment.

4 Hour Work Week by Tim Ferriss - Heard really good things about it so I figured I'd check it out

How to Talk With Practically Anybody About Anything by Barbara Walters (Yes the longtime host off the Today Show)

Post: #600

Empire of Ice, about the scientific background surrounding the last great era of polar exploration, especially the Antarctic. Some of it is intriguing at least and gives you a snapshot of what the leading lights of science were thinking in the 1850s - 1900s or so, mainly because science was the primary reason they went to Antarctica. Favouritism and elitism were no less a thing then, either: Amundsen made it to the South Pole first and, not being a Briton or Robert Scott who came second by a month or two, the Royal Geographic Society did everything it could to slight him and his achievement even despite the fact the RGS was meant to be an international sort of club. But then that was partially the point: Scott's expedition was primarily scientific and reaching the Pole was only one of its goals. It's eye-opening to see how much emphasis was given to science and scientific endeavour in the last century compared with today. And it was polar exploration that was the last great gasp of the British Empire before most of it got gunned down in World Wars One and Two. Some of it is more interesting than others.

God save us from people who mean well. -storm