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Journal SolemnDragon's Journal: Ten books that i think everyone should read 20

Journal by SolemnDragon
This is by no means all of the books that i feel people should read, but it's a good start and contains ten that i think everyone should read at least once.

The Universe and the Teacup, by K. C. Cole. Pay particular attention to the talk about voting. This is relevant.

Lies My Teacher Told Me by James W. Loewen. An interesting look at textbooks- and education. Those of you with children should absolutely read this, and then your kid's textbooks. The part about John Brown i found particularly revealing, and i had already been amazed to find out that Helen Keller didn't just sit around celebrating the day she learned to speak for the rest of her life. She's probably flipping in her grave to know that that's all schoolkids know about her, after all that she tried to do...

Bitch by Elizabeth Wurtzel. Should be read by anyone who is or knows or would ever like to be acquainted with a female. You will not watch movies or real life the same way anytime after.

Phantoms in the Brain by V. S. Ramachandran. Mysteries of Phantom Limb Syndrome explained by the person who developed a cure for it. You will suddenly know a great deal more about the brain, and be a lot more optimistic about our hope of surviving well in old age.

Voodoo Science by Robert Park, and Why People Believe Weird Things, by Michael Shermer, my copy of which has been nicked by my former best friend.
>:(
It's definitely worth reading, and worth then forcing on gullible family members.

Evil / Inside Human Violence And Cruelty Roy F. Baumeister. Probably THE best book that i've ever read on why people do bad things; it addresses lots of different aspects, and does it with facts, figures, studies, and clear simple-but-not-stupid language.

Hope In A Jar/ the Makings of America's Beauty Culture Kathy Peiss. Makeup as an example of American Culture and class segregation.

The Body Project Joan Jacoms Brumberg. The companion book to the former, as far as i'm concerned. Neither carries the oresent-day impact that Bitch does, but both explain how we got from past to present, and are fascinating because of the sheer economic issues that they present.

Uh-Oh,Robert Fulghum. One of his many books, right up there with It was on Fire When I Lay Down On It, (titled for the quote from a man whose house caught fire. When they traced the fire to his bed and asked how it happened, he said, "I don't know; it was on fire when i lay down on it.")

Jack of Shadows,R. Zelazny. Just because, well... it's one of my favourites.

All of Harlan Ellison's short stories that you can find. there are a lot. They're worth it.

LEt me know what you think.

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Ten books that i think everyone should read More

Ten books that i think everyone should read

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  • I have not read a one of these books, but I have read some Robert Fulghum -- the Kindergarten book. Funny how he kinda started a whole genre -- the Chicken Soup phenomenon and all.

    I don't feel so strongly that *everyone* should read anything. I guess I just don't think in universals.

    One book that I enjoyed that was in the same vein as Fulghum, but a little darker and less sappy was The Undertaking: Life Studies from the Dismal Trade [amazon.com] by Thomas Lynch.

    Another book that your list reminded me of, that real
    • I've been meaning to read that one for awhile now!

      My reason for saying that everyone should read them is not so that they can reach the same conclusions that i did, but because they sum up (the 'evil' book especially) some ways to think about things that school will rarely teach and that provide a basis for some of the discussions that people need more of, or atleast that most people need to learn to have IMO. I truly believe that if more people understood the actual math behind "fairness" (the universe a

      • Like I said, I will print it out and carry it with me. I've got a lot of reading to do, and am quite limited on the amount of time and concentration I can give to it, so it may take me a little while. But I will make an earnest attempt, OK?

        Oh, and I have another one to add, of things I have *thoroughly* enjoyed: The Shipping News by E. Annie Proulx. I just *love* that book. I have read it every year for 10 years now, and every time I discover something new. It is the highest compliment that from what I've
  • I've read some, but not others. Thanks for the list. I'd also like to add:

    Illusions: The Adventures of a Reluctant Messiah by Richard Bach. The sequel to Jonathan Livingston Seagull (which you should also read. Makes you hmmmm....

    Who Moved My Cheese? by Spencer Johnson (author of the One Minute Manager). A book about dealing with change.

    The entire Future Shock series of books about the third wave of society by Alvin and Heidi Toeffler. These guys are futurists. They predicted automation and the g
    • Hmmm... I read 10 Things you Can't Say, and I'm not sure I agree with the universality of that one. I mean, yes, the guy has great points and I love his arguments and what he has to say about things -- but he gets really long-winded about some of the issues, and it gets to feel like a bunch of filler material that some flunky researched for him (speaking as a former research flunky, myself).

      Worth a read, but it wouldn't make my Top 10.

      ....Bethanie....
      • You're right...I had reservations about putting that one in...but I'm libertarian and so is he, so of course I'm just trying to push my evil libertarian agenda on y'all. ;)

        The other three books are politically neutral, though, of course.

  • Voodoo Science by Robert Park, and Why People Believe Weird Things, by Michael Shermer

    I haven't read those two, but I think The Demon Haunted World: Science As a Candle in the Dark by Carl Sagan is in the same vein, and is pretty good...finished it the other week, and put some notes in a JE [slashdot.org].
  • My reading of late has mainly been graphic novels. Catching up on Grant Morrison's work on New X-Men, in particular.

    MT.
  • So a whole "community" (virtual or not) sprung up around Daniel Quinn's book Ishmael [ishmael.org], it's the first in a sort-of trilogy, that while not a single thread, work very well together. The second and third books are The Story of B [ishmael.org] (my favorite of the series) and My Ishmael [ishmael.org].
    His latest book (and it's great is) The Holy [ishmael.org]. He has written other books like his collection of short stories Beyond Civilization [ishmael.org], and A Newcomer's Guide to the Afterlife (sorry no link) an odd take life after death.
  • Bitch by Elizabeth Wurtzel. Should be read by anyone who is or knows or would ever like to be acquainted with a female. You will not watch movies or real life the same way anytime after.

    I tried reading this, as it looked really interesting. I even managed to force myself most of the way through - but I eventually gave up on it. You can tell she was coked up through most of the book, as it rambles on and on, often without making a point, or repeating the same point - which may not even be relevant.

    Not
    • Her point is that society has rules for dealing with women who get too uppity, and that they've been taken out on a lot of people- the best example being the media and court treatment of Amy Fisher, which deserves to be its own stand-alone book, as it's one of the more powerful sections. It is a rambling book, and you have to be willing to follow the thread through it that insists that women are not so much oppressed as relegated to certain roles, accurate or not, based on how they act, and that these roles

  • Bitch (Score:2)

    by Cujo ( 19106 )

    As a male who has had quite a bit to do with women - most of them difficult - over the years, I thought I'd consider this book, but what I read on the Amazon page [amazon.com] turned me off.

    • Strike one: a former rock critic. I don't have many absolutes, but Rock Critics are Morons is one I still cling to.
    • Strike two: book written on a drug binge. These are generally best appreciated by people who are themselves on a drug binge. These days, I prefer books that read well with a wee dram of single malt.
    • Strike Three:
    • A wee dram? How much is that in cubic attoparsecs?

      • The beauty of the dram, and in particular the wee dram, is the fluidity of the measurement to match the fluidity of the Uisghe Beata. The volume of a wee dram is an irrational number (but only after you've just consumed one).

        • A wee dram is more than 'a drop' and less than 'a draw.' The size is also relative, i can tell you from personal experience, to the quality of the liquid in question.

          • Last night it was Highland Park, so my dram was not so wee.

            • before i was diagnosed as being completely, utterly intolerant of any form of wheat, barley, rye, or every other grain but 3, i was given a dram of single-malt scitch that was 121 years old. Oh, it curls me toes just to think of it, it was so good. At least i dropped out of the game AFTER trying it, not before! *sigh* have a dram for me, please, next time you've got good stuff on hand...

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