MobileRead March 2010 Book Club Nominations

[lilac_jive]

Originally Posted by Dr. Drib

I'm recommending any Ann Rule non-fiction book.

What I'm saying is this: If you nominate one of her books, I'll second the nomination.

I think she's a wonderful crime writer and, as someone who enjoys the incredible features of crock-pots and microwaves, in addtion to enjoying Grateful Dead bootlegs recorded on antiquated 8-track tapes - I think I'm uniquely qualified to comment upon the depths of human depravity, surely a useful feature for someone who wants to make comments in a Book Club.

Hmmmmm????

Don

If you're going to go Anne Rule, you've gotta go with The Stranger Beside Me.

Ann Rule was a writer working on the biggest story of her life, tracking down a brutal mass-murderer. Little did she know that Ted Bundy, her close friend, was the savage slayer she was hunting.

So I guess I'm seconding this...

[maggotb0y]

Originally Posted by kennyc

So you already want to read it again, or just "impose" it on us?

Well, I don't know that I would read it cover to cover (erm, start to finish), but I would flip (erm, click) back through it for the discussion.

And it's a book that talks about medical ethics as they apply to new medical technologies and would likely generate some pretty interesting discussion, so while I wouldn't go so far as to impose it on anyone, I'd encourage them to read it and discuss it.

[colinsky]

Bertrand Russell, History of Western Philosophy:

Originally Posted by Bilbo1967

I, however, have never been able to find a full e-book version for sale - has anyone here?

BooksonBoard have it, in a few editions and formats.

Since this is already thirded, I'm going to use my second second to second Graves' Greek Myths.

[Yayafava]

I'd like to second:
'The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks' by Rebecca Skloot.

And if I'm allowed to second 2 books, the 2nd one would be
Charles Dickens "American Notes".

[MelC]

Originally Posted by kennyc

I don't think you should nominate/vote if you already read it...... just my thoughts...

I agree with the dissenters :P

This month is a perfect (was going to say prime but...) example of a book that I had read before many moons ago, remembered liking and, when invited to pick it up again for this month's book club discovered that I far more than liked it. It would have been a major missed opportunity for me to rediscover GWTW.

Mel

[kennyc]

Originally Posted by MelC

I agree with the dissenters :P
...

)%(&(#*&)(*CJN...buncha hooligans...)%(*#*)#(

[kennyc]

Originally Posted by Yayafava

I'd like to second:
'The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks' by Rebecca Skloot.

And if I'm allowed to second 2 books, the 2nd one would be
Charles Dickens "American Notes".

You get three nominations/seconds/thirds total....however you want to use them.

[pilotbob]

Originally Posted by ziegl027

I'd be interested in Stiff..

It already has 3 noms so you can have this nomination back... I assume it was a nomination.

BOb

[kennyc]

What???? Give-backs...



Does that mean we can take back noms and nom something else?

[pilotbob]

Originally Posted by Yayafava

And if I'm allowed to second 2 books, the 2nd one would be
Charles Dickens "American Notes".

This one already has 3 noms... so you can use this nom on something else if you want.

BOb

[pilotbob]

OK,

Here the count I have so far. The ones with (3) are added to the first message in the thread also...

(Some have comments under the title... if anyone can reply with that info)

Some are missing synopsis too... please provide.

(3) Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers? by Mary Roach
"Uproariously funny" doesn't seem a likely description for a book on cadavers. However, Roach, a Salon and Reader's Digest columnist, has done the nearly impossible and written a book as informative and respectful as it is irreverent and witty. From her opening lines ("The way I see it, being dead is not terribly far off from being on a cruise ship. Most of your time is spent lying on your back"), it is clear that she's taking a unique approach to issues surrounding death.

(2) Thinking as a Science by Henry Hazlitt

(3) The Omnivore's Delimma by Michael Pollan
In The Omnivore's Dilemma, Michael Pollan writes about how our food is grown -- what it is, in fact, that we are eating. The book is really three in one: The first section discusses industrial farming; the second, organic food, both as big business and on a relatively small farm; and the third, what it is like to hunt and gather food for oneself. And each section culminates in a meal -- a cheeseburger and fries from McDonald's; roast chicken, vegetables and a salad from Whole Foods; and grilled chicken, corn and a chocolate soufflé (made with fresh eggs) from a sustainable farm; and, finally, mushrooms and pork, foraged from the wild.

(2) The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair that Changed America by Erik Larson
Author Erik Larson imbues the incredible events surrounding the 1893 Chicago World's Fair with such drama that readers may find themselves checking the book's categorization to be sure that The Devil in the White City is not, in fact, a highly imaginative novel. Larson tells the stories of two men: Daniel H. Burnham, the architect responsible for the fair's construction, and H.H. Holmes, a serial killer masquerading as a charming doctor. Burnham's challenge was immense. In a short period of time, he was forced to overcome the death of his partner and numerous other obstacles to construct the famous "White City" around which the fair was built. His efforts to complete the project, and the fair's incredible success, are skillfully related along with entertaining appearances by such notables as Buffalo Bill Cody, Susan B. Anthony, and Thomas Edison. The activities of the sinister Dr. Holmes, who is believed to be responsible for scores of murders around the time of the fair, are equally remarkable. He devised and erected the World's Fair Hotel, complete with crematorium and gas chamber, near the fairgrounds and used the event as well as his own charismatic personality to lure victims. Combining the stories of an architect and a killer in one book, mostly in alternating chapters, seems like an odd choice but it works. The magical appeal and horrifying dark side of 19th-century Chicago are both revealed through Larson's skillful writing.

(1) The Dark Side: The Inside Story of How The War on Terror Turned into a War on American Ideals by Jane Mayer
“The Dark Side,” Jane Mayer’s gripping new account of the war on terror, is really the story of two wars: the far-flung battle against Islamic radicalism, and the bitter, closed-doors domestic struggle over whether the president should have limitless power to wage it. The euphemistically named but often grisly particulars of the fight against Al Qaeda — the “extraordinary renditions” by hooded agents in unmarked planes, the secret “black site” prisons across the globe, the “enhanced” interrogation techniques, the “reverse rendition” of detainees lucky enough to be found innocent and dumped blindfolded at remote borders — are harrowingly recounted here, complete with fresh revelations. But in Ms. Mayer’s hands the story of bureaucratic jockeying in well-upholstered offices and in the fine print of legal documents makes for an equally absorbing and disturbing story. It’s a cage match between the Constitution and a cabal of ideological extremists, and the Constitution goes down.

(3) The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot
It is a really fascinating book about a woman whose cells became the first 'immortal line' in medical research and 50 years after her death, are still being used and have led to many medical discoveries. Her family did not find out this was even going on until years after her death. It's a very interesting story.

(2) The World Without Us by Alan Weisman
This book examines what would happen to the planet if human beings disappeared. It looks at a wide variety of specific questions ranging from why and when bridges would fall down to what would happen to cockroaches. I just checked and it's available for both Kindle ($9.99) and SONY ($10.50).

(2) The Origin of the Species by Charles Darwin

(2) The Greek Myths by Robert Graves
(any links to ebook versions of this? I couldn't find it on Amazon.)
The title says it all.

(2) Charlatan: America's Most Dangerous Huckster, the Man Who Pursued Him, and the Age of Flimflam by Pope Brock
In 1917, after years of selling worthless patent remedies throughout the Southeast, John R. Brinkley--America’s most brazen young con man--arrived in the tiny town of Milford, Kansas. He set up a medical practice and introduced an outlandish surgical method using goat glands to restore the fading virility of local farmers.

(1) Quantum Theory Cannot Hurt You (also known as The Quantum Zoo) by Marcus Chown

(1) A Brief History of Time by Stephen Hawking

(3) Quirkology: How We Discover the Big Truths in Small Things by Richard Wiseman.
An award-winning psychologist exposes the truth behind life's little oddities and absurdities in this quirky and practical guide to life.
For over twenty years, psychologist Professor Richard Wiseman has examined the quirky science of everyday life. In Quirkology, he navigates the backwaters of human behavior, discovering the tell-tale signs that give away a liar, the secret science behind speed-dating and personal ads, and what a person's sense of humor reveals about the innermost workings of their mind-- all along paying tribute to others who have carried out similarly weird and wonderful work. Wiseman's research has involved secretly observing people as they go about their daily business, conducting unusual experiments in art exhibitions and music concerts, and even staging fake séances in allegedly haunted buildings. With thousands of research subjects from all over the world, including enamored couples, unwitting pedestrians, and guileless dinner guests, Wiseman presents a fun, clever, and unexpected picture of the human mind.

(3) American Notes by Charles Dickens
It's a short travelogue of Dickens' travels through America in the year 1842, and contains some wonderful descriptions of a world that no longer exists, and, in addition, is extremely funny in parts, such as Dickens' description of the then-prevalent habit of chewing tobacco and spitting.

(1) The Elegant Universe by Brian Greene
String theory, etc.

(1) Guns, Germs and Steel: the Fates of Human Societies by Jared Diamond
Explaining what William McNeill called The Rise of the West has become the central problem in the study of global history. In Guns, Germs, and Steel Jared Diamond presents the biologist's answer: geography, demography, and ecological happenstance. Diamond evenhandedly reviews human history on every continent since the Ice Age at a rate that emphasizes only the broadest movements of peoples and ideas. Yet his survey is binocular: one eye has the rather distant vision of the evolutionary biologist, while the other eye--and his heart--belongs to the people of New Guinea, where he has done field work for more than 30 years. Most of this work deals with non-Europeans, but Diamond's thesis sheds light on why Western civilization became hegemonic: "History followed different courses for different peoples because of differences among peoples' environments, not because of biological differences among peoples themselves." Those who domesticated plants and animals early got a head start on developing writing, government, technology, weapons of war, and immunity to deadly germs.

(1) The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin
The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin is the traditional name for the unfinished record of his own life written by Benjamin Franklin from 1771 to 1790; however, Franklin himself appears to have called the work his Memoirs. Although it had a tortuous publication history after Franklin's death, this work has become one of the most famous and influential examples of autobiography ever written.…

(1) An American on Purpose by Craig Ferguson

(3) A People's History of the United States by Howard Zinn
Consistently lauded for its lively, readable prose, this revised and updated edition of A People's History of the United States turns traditional textbook history on its head. Howard Zinn infuses the often-submerged voices of blacks, women, American Indians, war resisters, and poor laborers of all nationalities into this thorough narrative that spans American history from Christopher Columbus's arrival to an afterword on the Clinton presidency...

(3) A History of Western Philosophy by Bertrand Russell
(Is this available as an eBook?)
"First published in 1946, History of Western Philosophy went on to become the best-selling philosophy book of the twentieth century. A dazzlingly ambitious project, it remains unchallenged to this day as the ultimate introduction to Western philosophy. Providing a sophisticated overview of the ideas that have perplexed people from time immemorial, Russell's History of Western Philosophy offered a cogent précis of its subject. Of course this cannot be the only reason it ended up the best selling philosophy book of the twentieth century. Russell's book was 'long on wit, intelligence and curmudgeonly scepticism', as the New York Times noted, and it is this, coupled with the sheer brilliance of its scholarship, that has made Russell's History of Western Philosophy one of the most important philosophical works of all time."

(1) Bonk: The Curious Coupling of Science and Sex by Mary Roach

(1) PDQ Statistics by Geoffrey Norman
It's highly recommended by a colleague, and glancing through the "Look Inside this Book" feature on Amazon it seems like a pretty entertaining read for a math book.

(1) The Pluto Files: The Rise and Fall of America's Favorite Planet
As the most visible representative of those who led the charge to demote Pluto from its planetary status, Tyson is perhaps the only astrophysicist in history to receive hate mail from third-graders.

(2) The Stranger Beside Me by Anne Rule
Ann Rule was a writer working on the biggest story of her life, tracking down a brutal mass-murderer. Little did she know that Ted Bundy, her close friend, was the savage slayer she was hunting.


BOb

[kennyc]

Hey we need more votes for Guns Germs Steel.....it's popped back up on my radar and need the impetus to read it...

[JSWolf]

You left out The First 100,000 Prime Numbers. That has one nomination so far.

Which of the nominated books are not available outside the US? Which ever ones they are should be disqualified since the only way for people outside the US to get them (as an eBook) is illegally.

[WT Sharpe]

Originally Posted by pilotbob

OK,

Here the count I have so far. ...

My three votes are used up, but here are a few quick comments:

Originally Posted by pilotbob

... (2) The Origin of the Species by Charles Darwin ...

I plan to read this one day. Years ago, I started, but never finished. That being said, after the marathon reading of Gone with the Wind last month, I doubt most folks are ready to jump into another Bible-length book. I know it isn't my first preference.

Originally Posted by pilotbob

... (1) A Brief History of Time by Stephen Hawking ...

An excellent book, but not available as an e-book. THE GOOD NEWS: A Briefer History of Time by Stephen Hawking is.

Originally Posted by pilotbob

... (3) Quirkology: How We Discover the Big Truths in Small Things by Richard Wiseman ...

This is the one I'm pulling for. I think it would be a lot of fun.

From the Prologue:

Before we begin, please take a few moments to complete the following exercise.

Using the first finger of your dominant hand, please trace the capital letter Q on your forehead.

There are two ways of completing the exercise. You can draw the letter Q with the tail of the Q toward your right eye like this {ILLUSTRATION}

In this case, you can read it, but someone facing you can't.

Or you can draw it with the tail of the Q toward your left eye. {ILLUSTRATION}

In this case, someone facing you can read it, but you can't.

As we will discover later, the way in which you complete the task reveals a great deal about an important aspect of your life.

Originally Posted by pilotbob

... (1) The Elegant Universe by Brian Greene
String theory, etc. ...

I watched the series on PBS and it was fascinating. I certainly wouldn't cry if this one won the voting.

Originally Posted by pilotbob

... (1) The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin ...

A win here would make things easy on me. I read this one last year.

Originally Posted by pilotbob

... (1) An American on Purpose by Craig Ferguson ...

Another one that would be easy on me. I'm currently reading it.

Originally Posted by pilotbob

... (3) A History of Western Philosophy by Bertrand Russell ...

A wonderful work that IMHO should be read by everyone who loves philosophy at least once, but again, another Bible-length epic.

Originally Posted by pilotbob

... (1) The Pluto Files: The Rise and Fall of America's Favorite Planet ...

This was my second nomination. I really enjoy reading works by Neil deGrasse Tyson, and think he does a wonderful job as host of NOVA ScienceNOW. C'mon, somebody show your love and give him a second and third!

[seagull]

A Brief History of Time is available from Waterstones, I'm not sure about geo-restrictions though so I'd say A Brief History of Time (if you can get it) OR A Briefer History of Time would work.