DDickey Posted January 9, 2008 Report Share Posted January 9, 2008 I'm a huge, self-proclaimed book nerd. I read dozens of books in 2006 and decided, late that year, to begin cataloging, so to speak, every book I read in '07. In the end I read 104 books, which, more or less, was about the same amount of books I'd read in '06--I'm assuming; I can't, however, verify that. I decided to post the list of books I read here just for the hell of it. 2007 Reading List: 1. The Young Hemingway Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G-Manicus Posted January 9, 2008 Report Share Posted January 9, 2008 Wow! That's a lot of damn books! You don't own a TV, do you? :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Klingan Posted January 9, 2008 Report Share Posted January 9, 2008 Wow that's one book every 3rd day Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gaius Octavius Posted January 9, 2008 Report Share Posted January 9, 2008 Wow! It's no wonder that your language is to be applauded. Congratulations! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DDickey Posted January 9, 2008 Author Report Share Posted January 9, 2008 Wow! That's a lot of damn books! You don't own a TV, do you? :-) Unfortunately I do own a television, but it hasn't been on since, roughly, a week before Christmas. I am a HUGE movie geek, and own hundreds of DVDs--in the previous years I was a professional film critic, which was nice because I received a lot of free DVDs--but lately my reading has become even more obsessive than normal; and more recently I've been working on a series of essays about the Roman Republic, particularly the magistracies, government, assemblies, constitution, etc.; so that has consumed all of my free time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DDickey Posted January 9, 2008 Author Report Share Posted January 9, 2008 Wow! It's no wonder that your language is to be applauded. Congratulations! Thanks for the compliment! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G-Manicus Posted January 9, 2008 Report Share Posted January 9, 2008 DDickey: At Ursus' urging I've added "Rubicon" by Tom Holland to my list of things to read. How'd you like it? Also, how did you like the Foundation series? I've always meant to give that a crack. G Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DDickey Posted January 9, 2008 Author Report Share Posted January 9, 2008 DDickey: At Ursus' urging I've added "Rubicon" by Tom Holland to my list of things to read. How'd you like it? Also, how did you like the Foundation series? I've always meant to give that a crack. G I liked Rubicon, I just felt that, for me, there wasn't as much analysis as I would have liked. But apparently I may not be in the majority there. I remember reading a customer review on amazon.com for Goldsworthy's Caesar in which it was stated that Goldsworthy's book didn't have as much historical analysis as Rubicon, of which I believe the opposite is true. As for Asimov: Yes! I encourage you to read his works. When I re-read them recently, I only re-read the original three books. There are a total of seven novels in the foundation series; I'm not certain which I would recommend, however; reading the original three or the entire series. Either way, they are fun reads, and I always encourage reading Asimov. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Faustus Posted January 10, 2008 Report Share Posted January 10, 2008 Salve DD Some where back there in time did you read some of the earlier Asimov? For instance The Stars Like Dust and The Currents of Space. These are good set-ups for the foundation series. And how about Foundations Fear (Gregory Benford? (authorized by the estate of Asimov) Also Phillip K. Dick. . . .I still have a large collection of ancient stuff; SF I mean, and many of the old paper-back Ace Doubles. I.E/a novel on each side with reverse covers; these seemed to pick up where the old E.C. Science Fiction/Science Fantasy books fell out of the market. One more: Humanoids (With Folded Hands) by Jack Williamson (probably his best book ever). Some of those you may want to add to your 2009 reading list while there Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DDickey Posted January 10, 2008 Author Report Share Posted January 10, 2008 (edited) Salve DD Some where back there in time did you read some of the earlier Asimov? For instance The Stars Like Dust and The Currents of Space. These are good set-ups for the foundation series. And how about Foundations Fear (Gregory Benford? (authorized by the estate of Asimov) Also Phillip K. Dick. . . .I still have a large collection of ancient stuff; SF I mean, and many of the old paper-back Ace Doubles. I.E/a novel on each side with reverse covers; these seemed to pick up where the old E.C. Science Fiction/Science Fantasy books fell out of the market. One more: Humanoids (With Folded Hands) by Jack Williamson (probably his best book ever). Some of those you may want to add to your 2009 reading list while there’s still a chance for that. I started my SF collection in the middle fifties, and stopped when the genre became almost totally Science Fantasy in the eighties. The Foundation Series: I've read it several times over the decades. It's something I just begin all over again, including all the sequels beyond the trilogy. They are something I give away to neophytes in SF. to get them off on the right foot. Most people have heard of The Trilogy, but not my first two suggestions above which pertain in Asimov’s history sequence I've read most of Asimov's major Empire, Robot, and all of his Foundation books, focusing specifically on his works that shed light, so to speak, on the Foundation series--which can be tricky, of course, because in his later life Asimov tied in a large bulk of his science fiction books to the Foundation universe. I also read the Foundation trilogy approved by his estate and written by the so-called 'killer bees'--Gregory Benford, Greg Bear, and David Brin--and those books were, to me, deeply disappointing. I often, when recommending the Foundation series, expressly mention those books and only suggest reading them if, having read all of Asimov's work, one still hungers for the world created in Foundation. (By the way, for my money, The Mule from Second Foundation, is, without a doubt, the coolest character in all of science fiction.) Like you, I recommend the Foundation books to anyone interested in science fiction. I also recommend the Lensman series by E.E. "Doc" Smith. These novels, written in the late thirties, I believe, are generally considered to be the first space operas. They are fun stories filled with non-stop action, though they haven't, to a large part, aged well and seem fairly primitive in terms of hardcore science fiction. Still, they're great reads and an interesting insight into sci-fi's early beginnings. As for the Ace Doubles, I have a few, albeit more obscure sci-fi titles. I'd love to get my hands on a Philip K. Dick one. Speaking of obscure science fiction titles, have you ever read Level 7 by Mordecai Roshwald? It's a post-apocalyptic tale written as a series of diary entries published in the late 50s. It's been out of print forever, and is extremely difficult to find, but it is a fantastic little gem of a novel. If you can find it--and haven't read it--definitely give it a read. As for Humanoids (With Folded Hands) by Jack Williamson: I haven't read it but I'll definitely add it to my amazon wish list. Have you read Rudy Rucker? He's a mathematician as well as a writer, and his books are so imaginative that they will, at times, boggle your mind--and I am not exaggerating. If you haven't read him, I recommend two books: Master of Space and Time and Frek and the Elixir. Like I said, both are wonderfully imaginative tales. Edited January 10, 2008 by DDickey Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Faustus Posted January 11, 2008 Report Share Posted January 11, 2008 DDickey, Look for a PM on your topic. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G-Manicus Posted April 2, 2008 Report Share Posted April 2, 2008 DDickey ... what's your status? We're at the end of the 1st quarter already! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Julius Ratus Posted April 3, 2008 Report Share Posted April 3, 2008 That is a lot of books. I thought I read compulsively. I have been writing down the books I have read (for personal enjoyment, not for classes) since I was a Junior in High School (a long time ago). I doubt i have read 104 books in that time. I have been reading a lot this year, thanks to Sharpe. I have read about a dozen books since the December or so. I don't get cable so I read or watch movies. When I go to my parents house and watch TV, I think I loose IQ points every time I watch it. The exceptions are the historical series from HBO. I loved Rome, Deadwood, and am enjoying John Adams. Otherwise reading is my prefered form of intertainment. Anyway, keep up the good work and avoid mind numbing television. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DDickey Posted April 4, 2008 Author Report Share Posted April 4, 2008 DDickey ... what's your status? We're at the end of the 1st quarter already! I've been reading a lot this year, but so far I've managed to completely stay away from fiction. I find myself watching virtually no television and reading more than one book at a time. Here's a list of books I've read so far. 1. The Blind Watchmaker: Why the Evidence of Evolution Reveals a Universe Without Design Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kosmo Posted April 8, 2008 Report Share Posted April 8, 2008 Wow, nice! History and religion. "Missionary Position: Mother Teresa in Theory and Practice" - this title it's hillarious Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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