What is everone reading ?

“No but there is something we could go with on the Box and Tuna thing huh?”

“Is that what they serve you at the Y when you go to work out?”

“I work out at the Omni (LOL)....and there is some rather nice TUNA there if you get the thought.”

“Laurel sat still for only one paragraph of HP tonight.”

“well don't force it on her. she'll get into it soon enough. I pushed too hard to get my eldest to read the hobbit before she was ready and now she won't read it or the trilogy even though she loves the movies.”

“I read Watership Down in 9th grade...for some reason I hated it! I recall thinking, "This is so dumb, rabbits don't talk. How unrealistic!" LMAO! I think I'd probably like it now...

I'm reading Lost, by Gregory Maguire. It's really good, like the rest! They're all so different, it's bizarre. He always has a female heroine, which is sort of different for a dude writer. My fave is still Mirror, Mirror.”

“I am finishing book 1 of "An Unfinished Life" (JFK's recent biography). Since his was the first election I even remember, and I knew little of his pre-presidential days, and the book takes advantage of recently released information, I've found it quite facinating. A lot to listen to and in minute detail, but a good listen.”

“Just finished The Last Season, by Eric Blehm, about the SEKI backcountry ranger, Randy Morgenson, who went missing in '96. Great read. I started it on Saturday night and finished it on Wednesday morning. The author did an excellent job of making this reader feel familiar with the location and, especially, the ranger and his strong attraction to the mountains. I loved, especially, the many excerpts from Randy's own backcountry logbook. He was an eloquent write, too.

Getting ready to start The Children's Blizzard, by David Laskin. It's about a major blizzard that blew threw the northern plains in 1888 and killed hundreds of pioneers, lots of them children returning from school.”

“Just finished this morning: "Yosemite: Its discovery, its wonders, and its people" by Margaret Sanborn. ISBN 0939666502

Great read. Not a book on geology or nature as much as on the history and people. But that was much more interesting than I ever imagined. Covered the time from the first white man visits in the 1830s until the National Park was actually run by the Federal Government in the early 1900s.

The author developed the personalities of the various historical figures as well as what they did, which I enjoyed. John Muir was well covered throughout the book, as he should have been. Well researched.

Read this book before you go to Yosemite and it will heighten the experience.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0939666502/ref=sr_11_1/103-4977239-0327860?ie=UTF8
last edited: 8/03/06 8:25:05 PM”

“The Great Influenza: The Epic Story of the Deadliest Plague In History by John Barry”

“We recently visited Washington DC and visited The Holocost Museum. I had read A Promise for Rena last year and was very moved by it. So, after visiting the museum I've been reading Night by Elie Wiesel.

Some folks have asked why I want to read something so sad and depressing but after seeing the faces of the people who were died..I can't forget. We can't forget!!!”

“jimmy you are such a party animal”

“There's a Spiritual Solution to Every Problem by Wayne Dwyer

A Course in Miracles by God”

“nothing, I have no book on hand to read. I need to visit the library. I even just read my daughters school assignment "Red badge of Courage". I am desperate. wait, I am sure I can find an ebook”

“Back on 7/20/06 MDShiker posted some info about my book, Awol on the Appalachian Trail. MDShiker: Thank you for reading. I just stumbled upon the posting - sorry for the late reply - but I'd like to clarify what my book is about...

Nearly every story written (nonfiction or fiction) could be loosely called a journal, in the sense that most books proceed through a series of events in the sequence that they occur. I'd use the term "journal" only to describe books that contain day-by-day entries, usually bounded by the date and miles walked on that day, etc...
Examples of these are White Blaze Fever, Once Upon a Climb, and Ten Million Steps.

My book is NOT a journal. I do not have separate entries for each day, I do not talk about how many miles I walked, or what I ate every day. Some people like that level of detail, but that is not the intent of my book. I included daily detail only to the extent necessary to stage the story, maintain continuity and to provide some feel for the commonplace activities of thru-hiking. I strove to write a smooth, fast read - not broken by days, and not bogged down with extraneous detail.

"Awol on the AT" is introspective: what drives a person to this goal, thoughts had while thru-hiking, challenges encountered and how to deal with them, staying motivated, lessons learned, and inspirations found. Awol on the Appalachian Trail is "shorter but deeper" than the typical thru-hike account. If this all sounds too abstract, here are some
excerpts:

Why hike:

Working a 9-5 job took more energy than I had expected, leaving less time to pursue diverse interests. I grew to detest the statement: �I am a ...� with the sentence completed by an occupational title. Self-help books emphasize �defining priorities� and �staying focused� � euphemisms for specialization and stifling spontaneity. Our vision becomes so narrow that risk is trying a new brand of cereal; adventure is watching a new sitcom. Over time I have elevated my opinion of nonconformity nearly to the level of an obligation. We should have a bias toward doing activities that we don�t normally do to keep loose the moorings of society.

Motivation:

Gray Matter marches uphill ahead of me, legs like pistons, arms pumping in synch with trekking poles. I envy his youth. For a while I keep up, using his pace as I did with Bigfoot, to pass difficult miles quickly. But I fall behind. Looking up at him making the climb accentuates the steepness of the trail. In that moment I make the mistake of despairing over the difficulty of the task at hand, rather than just doing it. I opened the check-valve on my gumption and feel my energy drain away. Thoughts are the most effective weapon in the human arsenal. On the upside, it is powerful to realize that goals are reached primarily by establishing the proper state of mind. But if allowed the perspective that our endeavors are propped upon nothing but a notion, we falter.

On inspiration:

When I summit Mount Lincoln, I can see the next mile of trail along the rocky spine of Franconia Ridge. It is an awesome site. It doesn�t look like a mile to the next peak, Mount Lafayette, but moving specks � hikers on the trail � give scale to the scene that is before me.
From the top of Lafayette, views in all directions are bounded only by the limits of my vision. The enormous expanse of land evokes a powerful feeling of liberation. We spend an inordinate amount of time indoors, and the physical confinement limits the metaphorical bubble of our aspirations. Large rooms, like the vaulted interior of a church, are uplifting. Outdoors, we are free to reach for the sky.

For more excerpts, please visit www.AWOLontheTrail.com”

“The greatest author Clive Cussler, Black Wind....”

“I just finished "The Eyes of the Dragon" by Stephen King. It is a medeval (SP?) adventure. Not all of his work is blood, and horror. Check out the gunslinger series too! (awesome)This book is so good I may just start reading it again tonight! Most folks read a book once and never again. Not me. A good book is just like a good movie, I can read it over and over. American Gods, and Catch-22 are some others that I have done that with.”

“I'm rereading "The Descent" by Jeff Long. A rather creepy story. I have a couple friends that couldn't read it while they were alone.


They just came out with a movie by the same name....but it doesn't follow the book. It just uses the basic premise.”

“Just finished Choosers of the Slain by John Ringo. Its the 3rd in his Ghost series. An ex-navy seal freelancing. It has a lot of S&M sex in it, but I have learned to skip over the 2-3 pages he uses for the sex scene and move on. Thats not what I read that series for.

Shadow of Saganami by David Weber. Its the start of a new series in the Honor Universe, but with very little honor harrington. It was pretty good but it referenced pretty heavily from some of the other non-honor stories in the honor universe.
last edited: 8/17/06 8:30:04 PM”

“mean, I love the gunslinger! its the only works of his I like. The rest is so dumb to me.”

“I'm listening to JFK, An Unfinished Life. His was the first election I was aware of, and I was caught up in his charismatic nature. It is revealing to hear his history as a politician, his father's control in most of JFK's life, and his health problems, which were quite severe. The account of the Cuban Missle Crisis is quite captivating. Its 30 CD's long, so you need a long drive to get thru it.”

“1776

Great book. History that reads like a novel.”

“I just finished, "You'd Better Be Right," by Dick Burleson. Dick is a principal with a Birmingham engineering firm. He is also a retired Major General in the Alabama National Guard and a retired head SEC referee. The book is about his football refing days with lots of funny stories. I've heard him speak 3x and he's a wonderful speaker. He frequently talks to corporate groups on leadership.”

“SC, If you liked the gunslinger, you should check out The Eyes of the Dragon. Very good, and not at all like so much of his other stuff. Speaking of which, last night I picked up Insomnia again. Another King novel. My favorites are the long Series type books, because the story just keeps going so long that I stay entertained for months. Another good series is from Terry Brooks (can't remember the name) if you liked Tolkien check this out. Who needs TV? ;P”

“I'm on a Joyce Carol Oates kick right now! I always thought her books would be dumb, b/c she has sort of a dumb name, and also they always force you to read her short stories in school. But her novels are really good.”

“I agree with AWOL's comments. To me the book was more like a story than a journal. My wife read the book after me and told me several times that she enjoyed reading it.

Thanks for the email AWOL !”

“An instruction manual for an item that's made in the US yet still reads like Chinglish.”

“Tad Williams---

Otherworld”

“Jeff Greenfield's "'Oh, Waiter! One Order of Crow'" about the 2000 presidential election.

It's not a great book, but he was actually there when Florida was called and not called for Gore. So some of that is pretty interesting.

That election, despite the outcome, was probably the greatest election I'll ever live through.”

“Otehrworld is a great read. But its really 4 really thick books.”

“The Last American Man, Elizabeth Gilbert

very interesting, check it out :)”

“Agatha Christi
And then there were none...

Creepy az book. That thing makes me look over my shoulder, and I read horror all the time and nothing has ever done that to me before. It's pretty short too.”

“Belgarath the Sorcerer, by David and Leigh Eddings. I expect after this I'll read Polgara, then the Belgariad series, and finally the Malloreon series. Basically reading the books according to the chronology of that universe.”

“Damn! That is a daunting task. I began Eddings by reading the Elenium. Then I went to the Tamuli but it just wasn’t as good.

I’m reading Harlen Coban’s Promise Me and it is a page turner just like everything else he writes.

I am getting ready to read Book’s Elfstones of Shanara.

I am also in the middle of RA Salvator’s second Demon Wars series.”

“Terry Brooks rock Nigal. I have read The Well of the Unicorn (I think that's right)maybe it was the Scions of Shanara but never got the rest of the series. I will find it one of these days.”

“The Queen of Clean's "A Clean for all Seasons." Guess I'd better finally figure this housekeeping crap out, eh? Second house and all coming up soon. As well as showing this one. Yikes.”

“"On Becoming a Person" Carl R. Rogers. A friend said he just started reading it. I said I read it years ago. We decided to read, then meet and discuss it. First discussion will be over a bloody mary. That should be fun! :-)”

“What's Eating Gilbert Grape and An Ocean In Iowa by Peter Hedges are both really really good...I finished them not long ago. Don't you hate it when you find an awesome author, but the lousy bum only wrote one or two books?”

“LOL! I'm about half way through Harry Potter & the Chamber of Secrets. It's pretty good, and a quick read for me too.”

“True North

can't recall the author, but its about Cook and Peary and their struggle to reach teh North Pole. Really interesting and very conversationally written.”

“"The Sharing Knife" by Lois McMaster Bujold. I just finished it. It was a fun read, with one scene involving someone grabbing something they shouldn't have made me laugh until I cried.

I hate it when I can't spell.
last edited: 10/19/06 3:07:54 PM”

“I just finished James Patterson [i]Sam's Letters to Jennifer[i]”

“The third book of King's Dark Tower series.”

“Hi DDX. Wuz up?”

“The Dark Tower Totally rocks!”

“My colesterol level?

I just got back from a Restaurant in nearby Naucalpan in Mexico City. Some of the best grilled meat I've ever had and the wait staff had some phenominal talent. The one in the tight pink leather pants with little streamers down the leg was my favorite. I told her "te amo".

This is my first ever Stephen King book(s) I have ever read. Very good so far.”

“They are a far cry from the stuff he is best known for but they are fantastic!
Mexico City huh? Did you bring your Aqua Mira?”

“DDX - I guess this means you accepted that promotion then. Congrats.”

“The Latest Clive Cussler novel....”

““This is my first ever Stephen King book(s) I have ever read. Very good so far.”

Pet cemetery was always my favorite. I like his older stuff though.”