What are you reading right now?

[sgreger1]

I know we have threads about what your listening to, what your drinking, and whether or not you are currently sharting your pants, but I know we must have some book lovers in here as well!

So what are you reading?



I am an ADD reader, in that I cannot focus on just one thing at a time, I often read multiple books on different subjects all at the same time and not in any particular order (so I don't get bored with any 1 subject prematurely)

So I am currently reading:

I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings - Maya Angelou
Man's Search for Meaning - Viktor E. Frankl
Beyond Civilization- Daniel Quinn
Shroom- a cultural history of the magic mushroom


The later 3 are part of my general interest in sociology, the last 2 cater particularly to my interest in the similarities and contrasts between ancient sociology and that of our present day.

[PipenSnus]

Ah, nice idea for a thread. I occasionally have bouts of ADD reading too, but recently I've been trying to stick with one book at a time.

Currently reading: Energized Hypnosis: A Non-Book for Self Change by Christopher S. Hyatt and Calvin Iwema. Recommended to those who enjoy inner exploration.

[Darwin]

Steal Across The Sky by Nancy Kress
Small Miracles by Edward M. Lerner
Brasyl by Ian Macdonald

[sgreger1]

Anyone who is intirested in the holocaust, or in what goes on inside the mind of someone imprisoned in a Gulag/Concentration camp MUST read "Man's Search For Meaning", which was written by someone who was in Auschwitz. It is intiresting for me to try and understand mass movements, what leads to them and what becomes of them. But more important to how the leaders of the movement pull it off, is how it affects the worker bees. I find what happened in Germany to be the best place to observe this from recent times. Absolutely amazing book!

"Beyond Civilization" is a book I am just starting but is cool because it looks at ancient civilizations like the Mayans, Aztecs, Egyptians etc, and tries to figure out why they went from amazing superpowers to something more "humble" if you will. It generally seems to advocate a paradigm shift in how we live our lives and also advocates a more back to basics approach to living. Very intiresting read.

"I know why the caged bird sings" was one of Bill Clinton's favorite books and though I have not finished it, it is definately an intiresting autobiography. For those who havn't read it, it's about a young black child's struggle with racism in the south earlier in the century. Kind of like that movie "precious" but set during a time when blacks were still heavily oppressed.

"Shroom" is cool because it's all about the history of magic mushrooms and the role it has played in so many cultures and religions, including our own. As someone who has partaken of the holy fungus, I find everything about it fascinating.

[sgreger1]

Ah, nice idea for a thread. I occasionally have bouts of ADD reading too, but recently I've been trying to stick with one book at a time.

Currently reading: Energized Hypnosis: A Non-Book for Self Change by Christopher S. Hyatt and Calvin Iwema. Recommended to those who enjoy inner exploration.

What sort of inner exploration? Who is not intirested in inner exploration! I find that subject fascinating to, as humanity has been doing this since it's beginnings, we seem hardwired for self reflection and exploration of who we are and why we are here. Either that or it is a side effect of being a self aware being.

[danielan]

HP Lovecraft Complete v3 - free ebook (http://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?t=27083 - I love my nook)
The Art of Software Security Assessment - Dowd et al

[sgreger1]

An excelent excerpt from the book "Beyond Civilization" deals with how in our current paradigm, whenever there is a problem (crime, drugs, hunger etc) we create some program to fix it (welfare, prisons, war on drugs etc). This hasn't worked well, check it out:

Programs make it possible to look busy and purposeful while failing.
If programs actually did the things people expect them to do, then human society would be heaven: our governments would work, our school would work, our law enforcement systems would work, our justice systems would work, our penal systems would work, and so on.

When programs fail (as the invariably do), this is blamed on things like poor design, lack of funds and staff, bad management, and inadequate training. When programs fail, look for them to be replaced by new one with improved design, increased funding, staff, superior management, and better training. When these new programs fail (as they invariably do), this is blamed on poor design, lack of funds and staff, bad management, and inadequate training.

This is why we spend more and more on our failures every year. Most people accept this willingly enough, because they know they’re getting more every year: bigger budgets, more laws, more police, more prisons- more of everything that didn't work last year or the year before that or the year before that.

A man was found sitting in the middle of the desert in a contraption made of rocks, bits of lumber, and old, blown tires, which he was busily "steering" as if it were actually a vehicle in motion.

Asked what he was doing, the man said, "driving home."
"Your never going to get there in this," he was told
He said, "If not in this, than in what?"


The whole premise of the book is breaking the current failing paradigm of solving our problems with programs or "wars on ___" (which never work) . Excelent read.

[PipenSnus]

What sort of inner exploration?

It's about (1) ridding yourself of all the BS that's been crammed into your head since birth, much of which most people aren't even aware of; and (2) reprogramming yourself, according to what you really want and need, rather than according to any system of dogma, for a more fulfilling life. Beyond that, you'll have to read the book and find out for yourself. It's available through Amazon, or from New Falcon Publications: http://www.newfalcon.com/main.htm

[Premium Parrots]

ok enough of the trick questions. There is only one true answer. Right now I am reading the posts at SnusOn. And so are you as you are reading this right now.






muahahahaha

[sgreger1]

Damnit, PP is right. It's a circular question.

Nice new sig btw lol

[deadohsky]

I am currently reading The Elegant Universe by Brian Greene.

Anyone who is intirested in the holocaust, or in what goes on inside the mind of someone imprisoned in a Gulag/Concentration camp MUST read "Man's Search For Meaning", which was written by someone who was in Auschwitz. It is intiresting for me to try and understand mass movements, what leads to them and what becomes of them. But more important to how the leaders of the movement pull it off, is how it affects the worker bees. I find what happened in Germany to be the best place to observe this from recent times. Absolutely amazing book!

I share my father's interest in WWII and the Holocaust. I found these books after his death.

[sgreger1]

!! Holy shit Deadhosky, that's a crazy collection! Also, an elegant universe by Brian Greene is an excellent book, one of my first books I read on the nature of the universe.



Has anyone ever read "The richest man in Babylon" or "Meditations" by Marcus Aurelius?



EDIT: I see you have read a lot on UFO's as well lol

[Premium Parrots]

thats an incredible collection.


Does reading and still haveing, in proper storage, every mad magazine since 1957 count? I'm missing about 6 issues. And I have some from before 57 but not all.

[Ninakae]

Organic Gardening Mag and it's a great mag 2

[sgreger1]

If we're including magazines than I am also catching up on the last 2 months of Wired magazine, my favorite magazine of all time.