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OT: Good books

A lot of good suggestions here. I'm an avid reader... I'll try to add a few that I haven't seen mentioned.

Read "Shogun" and then watch the show. Both fantastic.

I, Claudius

A Tale of Two Cities

Patrick O'Brien's series starting with Master and Commander

A Gentleman in Moscow
 
I don’t read much but, How to Think About Money, is the rare book I’m glad I read.

Might not be genre you had in mind, but should be required reading in high schools in my humble opinion. Apologies for the tangent that’s the book that came to me first.
 
I'm about 3/4rds the way through Solito, a memoir of writer Javier Zamora and his immigration journey from El Salvador when he was just nine years old.

Also, gratefully came upon How to Think Like a Monk while vacationing in Cape Cod. Started reading during a particularly turbulent time of the summer.
 
husky429 said:
A lot of good suggestions here. I'm an avid reader... I'll try to add a few that I haven't seen mentioned.

Read "Shogun" and then watch the show. Both fantastic.

I, Claudius

A Tale of Two Cities

Patrick O'Brien's series starting with Master and Commander

A Gentleman in Moscow
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Shogun is perhaps James Clavelle's best work but the Nobel House multi-book series is a close second! Sad that he died before finishing what woukd have been the final book in the series.
 
Matrim55 said:
I'm about a quarter of a way into The Power Broker, which might very well be the best book ever written. I'm in awe at the level of detail in the research Robert Caro did for this.

99% Invisible is doing a year-long read-along with it this year, so there's a fun companion podcast if you're into that sort of thing.
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This just a fabulous book in which you learn the history of why car and rail transit are so screwed up in the NYC area. Also, Robert Moses was a total meglomaniac who deserves a special.place in hell for what did to his brother, among others.
 
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alphasigko said:
Shogun is perhaps James Clavelle's best work but the Nobel House multi-book series is a close second! Sad that he died before finishing what woukd have been the final book in the series.
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Loves that series.. aside from Whirlwind.. I can’t give up on it, but I’ve been reading it for months a few pages at a time because it really bores me. The rest of that series is fantastic though.
 
tomtom80 said:
Lots of good suggestions here. I’ve read most of all of McCullough stuff. For in depth history he is amazing. If you like history, Doris Kearns Goodwin has great options including Team of Rivals(Lincoln); Ron Chernow(Alexander Hamilton); Civil War buffs should look at Jeff Shara.

For fiction, 2 of my Favorites are Shantaram by David Roberts ( Bombay ) and Trinity by Leon Uris( Ireland) for amazing character development and cultural drama. For lighter stuff, anything by Michael Creighton ( JURASIC) or Dan Brown (Davinci Code) is a good bet.
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Shantaram is one of the best novels I’ve ever read.
 
Papillon is a great book. (A fantastic movie as well, starring Dustin Hoffman and Steve McQueen.)
 
alphasigko said:
Gosh, I read one book after another and have so many to suggest. This is a starter List:

I Heard You Paint Houses (The story of the demise of Jimmy Hoffa)

Endurance (A true story of survival while stranded in Antarctica)

The Devil & The White City

In the Garden of the Beasts

The Beatles (one of the best reads about one of the best bands ever)

The House of Pain (the story of Oxycondin)

The Romanovs

Mao: The Untold Story

Operation Solo (an unbelievable ture spy story)

Rival Rails (the OTHER transcontinental railroads)

Undaunted Courage (The Lewis & Clark expedition)

Jerry Garcia: An American Life

Each of these is a great read.

I could go on for pages...hope you pick up one or two and enjoy!
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Endurance! That blew me away.
If you like musical autobiographies, I’d add Life, by Keith Richards, to the list. Well written, upbeat, and a very fun ride.
 
Shogun by James Clavell
The Sympathizer by Viet Thanh Nguyen
Death and Life of Great American Cities by Jane Jacobs
 
If you haven't read Stephen Ambrose's Band of Brothers I would highly recommend it, even if you have seen the miniseries. Unbroken and Seabiscuit are better than the movies as well. In God We Trust: All Others Pay Cash is another good read. A lot of it will be familiar though if you've seen "A Christmas Story". It's what in spired it, but covers much more than just a winter. It's more of a collection of short stories about Ralphie and his family. I also enjoyed Benjamin Hall's Saved about his rescue and recovery from his ordeal int he Ukraine. I'm just starting Eruption which Michael Crichton had started but never finished and was finished by James Patterson.
 
A few mentioned here, Shogun and Lonesome Dove, were among my favorites.

Years ago at my school teachers were asked to post a sign with our favorite book titles. There were a few of us that picked A PRAYER FOR OWEN MEANEY. I read it (and a few other John Irving books) in the late 80s … I may just reread now that I’m thinking about it.
 
Wholeness and the Implicate Order by David Bohm. A physicist describes the imperceivable essence that lies beyond and gives rise to our perceived reality.

Yeah, no forget it. Sorry.
 
98Uconn said:
Loves that series.. aside from Whirlwind.. I can’t give up on it, but I’ve been reading it for months a few pages at a time because it really bores me. The rest of that series is fantastic though.
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Agreed on Whirlwind...i read it during a 2 month solo trip across Europe and it took the whole trip to finish it.
 
El Obrero said:
Endurance! That blew me away.
If you like musical autobiographies, I’d add Life, by Keith Richards, to the list. Well written, upbeat, and a very fun ride.
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Yes... I read that as well... A real "guy's" book! So much fun learning about the early years of the Stones!
 
Spaceman213J said:
If you haven't read Stephen Ambrose's Band of Brothers I would highly recommend it, even if you have seen the miniseries. Unbroken and Seabiscuit are better than the movies as well. In God We Trust: All Others Pay Cash is another good read. A lot of it will be familiar though if you've seen "A Christmas Story". It's what in spired it, but covers much more than just a winter. It's more of a collection of short stories about Ralphie and his family. I also enjoyed Benjamin Hall's Saved about his rescue and recovery from his ordeal int he Ukraine. I'm just starting Eruption which Michael Crichton had started but never finished and was finished by James Patterson.
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Band of Brothers was outstanding and so was the TV series.

Ambrose wrote several other great books:

Undaunted Courage (a complete history of the Lewis & Clark Expedition)

D-Day (really a must read to understand all that happened there)

Nothing Like It In The World (not is best work, but he details the construction of the 1st Transcontinental RR)
 
LIuconn said:
www.goodreads.com

A Walk in the Woods: Rediscovering America on the Appal…

The Appalachian Trail stretches from Georgia to Maine a…
www.goodreads.com www.goodreads.com
Working through this one. Easy reader
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Other Bill Bryson’s works worth considering - “A Short History of Everything”and “In a Sunburned Country”. Both are a lot of fun - he gives a layman’s take on everything so it’s easily understood but likely a bit under-explained.
 
All about your interests and the time you can commit to reading. Shout out to Shogun but wanted to suggest some books not already mentioned.
The Fountainhead/Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand
Origin/Lost Symbol/DaVinci Code by Dan Brown
Centennial/Hawaii by James Michener
The Last Templar by Raymond Khoury
Golf in the Kingdom by Michael Murphy
Killers of the Flower Moon by David Grann
The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
The Stranger in the Lifeboat by Mitch Albom
 
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Umami Zen said:
All about your interests and the time you can commit to reading. Shout out to Shogun but wanted to suggest some books not already mentioned.
The Fountainhead/Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand
Origin/Lost Symbol/DaVinci Code by Dan Brown
Centennial/Hawaii by James Michener
The Last Templar by Raymond Khoury
Golf in the Kingdom by Michael Murphy
Killers of the Flower Moon by David Grann
The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
The Stranger in the Lifeboat by Mitch Albom
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I loved “The Fountainhead”. I discovered it at a cottage that I was renting and I couldn’t put it down. A good book to read when I want that “don’t give a shoot”attitude like Howard.

Also the same name as a good local band. I wonder if Kenny and Artie were inspired by the book.
 
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