Books you read in 2019

Discussion in 'TMB Book Club' started by billdozer, Jan 2, 2019.

  1. Tangman

    Tangman Well-Known Member
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    Glad to see you liked Power Broker. Everyone says its the GOAT and I own it but man thats a lot of pages. Maybe this year I'll finally do it.
     
  2. The Blackfish

    The Blackfish The Fish in Black
    Staff Donor TMB OG
    Alabama Crimson TideIndianapolis ColtsBook Club

    It really is a masterful work. Never thought Section XXVII Article IX of the New York State Park Authority Bond Covenant could be so riveting.
     
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  3. BigRed

    BigRed Well-Known Member
    South Carolina GamecocksLos Angeles DodgersLos Angeles LakersAtlanta FalconsMontreal Impact

    1. The Future of Humanity by Machio Kaku ****
    2. The Giver by Lois Lowry ***
    3. The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes *****
    4. A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess ****
    5. An Unwanted Guest by Shari Lapena **
    6. Grain Brain by David Perlmutter ***
    7. Beartown by Fredrik Backman *****
    8. Catch-22 by Joseph Heller ***
    9. The Wife Between Us by Greer Hendricks **
    10. Us Against You by Fredrik Backman *****
    11. Rebel Yell: The Violence, Passion, a s Redemption of Stonewall Jackson by S.C. Gwynne *****
    12. The Road by Conor McCarthy **
    13. The Last Castle: The Epic Story of Love, Loss, and American Royalty in the Nation's Largest Home by Denise Kiernan **
    14. A Princess of Mars by Edgar Rice Burroughs ****
    15.The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah *****
    16. The Stranger by Albert Camus ***1/2
    17. The Time Machine by H.G. Wells ***
    18. Edgedancer (The Starlight Archive 2.5) by Brandon Sanderson *****
    19. Martin Luther: The Man Who Rediscovered God and Changed the World ****1/2
    20. The Rise and Fall of Dinosaurs by Stephen Brusatte ****
    21. Moby Dick by Herman Melville *
    22. One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez *
    23. Enders Game by Orson Scott Card ****1/2
    24. Above the Waterfall by Ron Rash ****
    25. Kite Runner by Khalid Hosseni **
    26. Black Leopard, Red Wolf by Marlon James *1/2
    27. Good Omens by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman ***
    28. David Copperfield by Charles Dickens ***
    29. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen **1/2
    30. Clouds of Glory by Michael Korda *****
    31. Outliers: The Story of Success by Malcolm Gladwell ****
    32. In the Hurricane’s Eye: The Genius of George Washington and the Victory at Yorktown by Nathaniel Philbrick ****
    33. Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis ****
    34. The Other Woman by Sandie Jones ****
    35. The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood ***
    36. What the Dog Saw and Other Adventures by Malcolm Gladwell **1/2
    37. David and Goliath: Underdogs, Misfits, and the Art of Battling Giants by Malcolm Gladwell ***1/2
    38. A River Runs Through It and Other Stories by Norman Maclean ****1/2
    39. American Gods by Neil Gaiman ****1/2
    40. Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind by Yuval Noah Harari ***
    41. Beastie Boys Book by Michael Diamond and Adam Horovitz *****
    42. Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking by Malcolm Gladwell **
    43. The Magnolia Story by Chip and Joanna Gaines ****
    44. For Whom the Bell Tolls by Ernest Hemingway ***1/2
    45. The Winter of the Witch by Katherine Arden ****1/2
    46. The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger ***
    47. Guns, Germs, and Steel by Jared Diamond *****
    48. Recursion by Blake Crouch ****1/2
    49. Churches and Churchyards of England and Wales by Richard Hayman ****
    50. Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens *****
    51. Benjamin Franklin by Walter Isaacson ****1/2
    52. The Dream House by Jess Ryder **
    53. The Farm by Joanne Ramos ***
    54. The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides *****
    55. The Lost Man by Jane Harper **1/2
    56. The Quiet Game (Penn Cage #1) - Greg Iles ***** - I’m a big fan of Greg Iles. Every book of his I have read is fantastic. One thing I love most is that his characters have so much emotion and detail to them. He reminds me a bit of John Grisham.
    57. The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson ***1/2 -
    enjoyable horror classic that is more of a thought provoking story than one that will scare you.
    58. Crazy Rich Asians by Kevin Kwan **** - its not all that girly as I was afraid it would be. I enjoyed learning more about Asian customs and culture and kept interested in the story, as it differs slightly from the film.
    59. Rebel Richmond: Life and Death in the Confederate Capital by Stephen Ash ***1/2 - interesting account of what it was like to live in Richmond during the Civil War. Things that peaked my interest were how the price of butter/bacon/other goods rose 20x in cost from the beginning of the war to the end.
    60. America Before: The Key to Earth’s Lost Civilization by Graham Hancock ***1/2 - I found his evidence lacking and the book to graze over arguments. But at the same time, it is thought provoking.
    61. Einstein: His Life and Universe by Walter Isaacson ***** - fantastic biography. I now have to read the Steve Jobs book. Walter Isaacson has a talent for “cutting the fat” so to say, and deliver a rich account of someone’s life without bogging the reader down with too much fluff of information (i.e. the complete opposite of Chernow in my experience). I just hate that Isaacson has claimed his book on Leonardo da Vinci is his last biography of a creative genius.
     
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  4. TC

    TC Peter, 53, from Toxteth
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    Love this type of shit. You ever heard of this book?

    [​IMG]

     
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  5. Truman

    Truman Well-Known Member
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    No offense but LMAO at Graham Hancock. That guy is a kook of the highest order
     
  6. BigRed

    BigRed Well-Known Member
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    No I have not. Thank you the recommendation!
     
  7. BigRed

    BigRed Well-Known Member
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    Yeah, I liked Fingerprints of the Gods, but America Before is tough to read because I did not find too many arguments I agreed on
     
  8. TC

    TC Peter, 53, from Toxteth
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    It's long af (a "doorstop" of a book) but I have it on my shelf and it looks super good. Gonna dive in eventually. The author's previous book "The Discoverers" sounds good too but I'm even more interested in the artistic stuff.

    Another artistic biography book I'd like to read one day is the old school is Plutarch's "Parallel Lives" where he goes through pairs of Greek and Roman artists and compares their lives.
     
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  9. BigRed

    BigRed Well-Known Member
    South Carolina GamecocksLos Angeles DodgersLos Angeles LakersAtlanta FalconsMontreal Impact

    Just started reading this last night and I am pumped to find out more about the badass William Marshall!

    [​IMG]
     
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  10. BigRed

    BigRed Well-Known Member
    South Carolina GamecocksLos Angeles DodgersLos Angeles LakersAtlanta FalconsMontreal Impact

    Added both to my Goodreads to-read list. I’ve been meaning to check out some of Plutarch’s works.
     
  11. billdozer

    billdozer Well-Known Member
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    1. Nyphron Rising (Riyria Revelations #3) - Michael Sullivan (8.5/10)
    2. The Emerald Storm (Riyria Revelations #4) - Michael Sullivan (7.5/10)
    3. Wintertide (Riyria Revelations #5) - Michael Sullivan (8/10)
    4. Percepliquis (Riyria Revelations #6) - Michael Sullivan (9/10)
    5. Percepliquis (Riyria Revelations #6) - Michael Sullivan (9/10)
    6. The Crown Tower (Riyria Chronicles #1) - Michael Sullivan (8/10)
    7. The Rose and the Thorn (Riyria Chronicles #2) - Michael Sullivan (8.5/10)
    8. The Death of Dulgath (Riyria Chronicles #3) - Michael Sullivan (8/10)
    9. Who Censored Roger Rabbit? - Gary Wolf (8/10)
    10. The Right Stuff - Tom Wolfe (10/10)
    11. On the Shoulders of Titans, A History of Project Gemini - NASA (8/10)
    12. A Man on the Moon - Andrew Chaikin (9/10)
    13. Apollo - Charles Murray and Catherine Cox (10/10)
    14. Failure is Not an Option - Gene Krantz (8/10)
    15. Hidden Figures - Margot Lee Shetterly (7/10)
    16. Rise of the Rocket Girls - Nathalia Holt (8.5/10)

    This was better than Hidden Figures as it had more detail on what they worked on and their processes. This is about the women computers who worked at JPL which developed the two stage rockets for NASA. Most if JPL's work is on the unmanned missions like Voyager and the MARS rovers, so it gave some good information on those.
     
    #261 billdozer, Jul 4, 2019
    Last edited: Jul 6, 2019
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  12. billdozer

    billdozer Well-Known Member
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    1. Nyphron Rising (Riyria Revelations #3) - Michael Sullivan (8.5/10)
    2. The Emerald Storm (Riyria Revelations #4) - Michael Sullivan (7.5/10)
    3. Wintertide (Riyria Revelations #5) - Michael Sullivan (8/10)
    4. Percepliquis (Riyria Revelations #6) - Michael Sullivan (9/10)
    5. Percepliquis (Riyria Revelations #6) - Michael Sullivan (9/10)
    6. The Crown Tower (Riyria Chronicles #1) - Michael Sullivan (8/10)
    7. The Rose and the Thorn (Riyria Chronicles #2) - Michael Sullivan (8.5/10)
    8. The Death of Dulgath (Riyria Chronicles #3) - Michael Sullivan (8/10)
    9. Who Censored Roger Rabbit? - Gary Wolf (8/10)
    10. The Right Stuff - Tom Wolfe (10/10)
    11. On the Shoulders of Titans, A History of Project Gemini - NASA (8/10)
    12. A Man on the Moon - Andrew Chaikin (9/10)
    13. Apollo - Charles Murray and Catherine Cox (10/10)
    14. Failure is Not an Option - Gene Krantz (8/10)
    15. Hidden Figures - Margot Lee Shetterly (7/10)
    16. Rise of the Rocket Girls - Nathalia Holt (8.5/10)
    17. The Martian - Andy Weir (10/10)
     
    #262 billdozer, Jul 6, 2019
    Last edited: Jul 6, 2019
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  13. The Blackfish

    The Blackfish The Fish in Black
    Staff Donor TMB OG
    Alabama Crimson TideIndianapolis ColtsBook Club

    First time reading it? Had you already seen the movie?
     
  14. billdozer

    billdozer Well-Known Member
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    Yeah. I saw the movie when it came out, just had never gotten around to reading the novel. Since I'm finishing up all my NASA reading, I figured now was a good time.
     
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  15. billdozer

    billdozer Well-Known Member
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    Clemson TigersCarolina Panthers

    1. Nyphron Rising (Riyria Revelations #3) - Michael Sullivan (8.5/10)
    2. The Emerald Storm (Riyria Revelations #4) - Michael Sullivan (7.5/10)
    3. Wintertide (Riyria Revelations #5) - Michael Sullivan (8/10)
    4. Percepliquis (Riyria Revelations #6) - Michael Sullivan (9/10)
    5. The Crown Tower (Riyria Chronicles #1) - Michael Sullivan (8/10)
    6. The Rose and the Thorn (Riyria Chronicles #2) - Michael Sullivan (8.5/10)
    7. The Death of Dulgath (Riyria Chronicles #3) - Michael Sullivan (8/10)
    8. Who Censored Roger Rabbit? - Gary Wolf (8/10)
    9. The Right Stuff - Tom Wolfe (10/10)
    10. On the Shoulders of Titans, A History of Project Gemini - NASA (8/10)
    11. A Man on the Moon - Andrew Chaikin (9/10)
    12. Apollo - Charles Murray and Catherine Cox (10/10)
    13. Failure is Not an Option - Gene Krantz (8/10)
    14. Hidden Figures - Margot Lee Shetterly (7/10)
    15. Rise of the Rocket Girls - Nathalia Holt (8.5/10)
    16. The Martian - Andy Weir (10/10)
    17. Unsouled (Cradle #1) - Will Wight (9/10)

    This was a good quick read of a fantasy novel. Similar to the Codex Alera books with a bit of Green Lantern mixed in.
     
    #265 billdozer, Jul 7, 2019
    Last edited: Jul 14, 2019
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  16. Truman

    Truman Well-Known Member
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    Is that weir book new?
     
  17. billdozer

    billdozer Well-Known Member
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    Clemson TigersCarolina Panthers

    No, Book #6 in this Cradle series just came out. I just found this one and it sounded interesting. I enjoyed it.
     
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  18. BP

    BP Bout to Regulate.
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    This guy was a monster
    I Heard You Paint Houses: Frank "The Irishman" Sheeran & Closing the Case on Jimmy Hoffa
     
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  19. Truman

    Truman Well-Known Member
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    1. Consent to Kill (Mitch Rapp #7) by Vince Flynn (9/10)
    2. Warmth of Other Suns: The Epic Story of America's Great Migration, by Isabell Wilkerson (9.5/10)
    3. Act of Treason (Mitch Rapp #8) by Vince Flynn (9/10)
    4. Citizen Soldiers by Stephen Ambrose (8.5/10)
    5. Protect and Defend (Mitch Rapp #9) by Vince Flynn (9/10)
    6. Extreme Measures (Mitch Rapp #10) by Vince Flynn (8/10)
    7. Pursuit of Honor (Mitch Rapp #11) by Vince Flynn (7.5/10)
    8. American Assassin (Mitch Rapp #12) by Vince Flynn (6/10)
    9. No Exit by Taylor Adams (7.5/10)
    10. An Anonymous Girl by Greer Hendrick (6.5/10)
    11. Uncle Tom's Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe (8.5/10)
    12. Last Man (Mitch Rapp #13) by Kyle Mills (6.5/10)
    13. The Survivor (Mitch Rapp #14) by Kyle Mills (6.5/10)
    14. Star Wars: The Queen's Shadow by EK Johnston (8/10)
    15. American Spy by Lauren Wilkenson (9/10)
    16. Five Families: The Rise, Decline, And Resurgence of America's Most Powerful Mafia Empires by Salwyn Raab (9/10)
    17. Tiamat's Wrath (The Expanse #8) by James S A Corey (10/10
    20 Cherry by Nico Walker (8/.510)
    21. The Spy and the Traitor: The Greatest Espionage Story of the Cold War, by Ben Macintyre (8/10)
    22. Star Wars: Master and Apprentice, by Claudia Gray (8/10)
    23. Say Nothing: A True Story of Murder and Memory in Northern Ireland, by Patrick Radden Keefe (9/10)
    24. Here and Now And Then, by Mike Chen (7/10)
    25. The White Darkness by David Grann (6/10)
    26. Where the Crawdads Sing, by Delia Owens (9/10)
    27. The Republic for Which it Stands: The United States During Reconstruction and the Gilded Ageby Richard White (9/10)
    28. It by Stephen King (8/10)
    29. Outland by Dennis E Taylor (8.5/10)
    30. Hunting LeRoux by Elaine Shannon (8/10)
    31-33 Wayward Pines Trilogy by Blake Crouch (7.5/10)
    34. Midnight in Chernobyl, by Adam Higginbotham (8.5/10)
    35. The Cuckoo's Calling by Robert Galbreath/JK Rowling (6.5/10)
    36. Cari Mora by Thomas Harris (6.5/10)
    37. Star Wars: Alphabet Squadron by Alexander Freed (7.5/10)
    38. The River by Peter Heller (8.5/10)
    39. Recursion by Blake Crouch (9/10)
    40. The British Are Coming by Rick Atkinson (9/10)
    41. Fleishman is in Trouble by Taffy Brodesser-Akner (8.5/10)
    42. Red War (Mitch Rapp #17) by Kyle Mills (9/10)
    42. The Quiet Game (Penn Cage #1) by Greg Iles (9.5/10)
    43. Turning Angel (Penn Cage #2) by Greg Iles (9/10)
    44. The Chain by Adrian McKinty (8/10)

    Been burning through some good reads the past few weeks w a lot of off days


    British are Coming -
    amazing book. Learned a lot and I consider myself fairly well read in the Revolutionary War

    Fleishman is in Trouble -
    another great book I never would have read if not for TMB book club

    Red War -
    best Mitch Rapp book in a while. Lots of suspense. Couldn’t put it down.

    Penn Cage books -
    these have been on my list for a while and now I’m kicking myself for not getting to them sooner. Great story telling , character development. Big twists ect.

    The Chain -
    good beach read. Mom gets a call that her daughter is kindnapped. Won’t be released until she kidnapps another child and continues the chain.
     
    #269 Truman, Jul 14, 2019
    Last edited: Jul 14, 2019
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  20. billdozer

    billdozer Well-Known Member
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    Clemson TigersCarolina Panthers

    1. Nyphron Rising (Riyria Revelations #3) - Michael Sullivan (8.5/10)
    2. The Emerald Storm (Riyria Revelations #4) - Michael Sullivan (7.5/10)
    3. Wintertide (Riyria Revelations #5) - Michael Sullivan (8/10)
    4. Percepliquis (Riyria Revelations #6) - Michael Sullivan (9/10)
    5. The Crown Tower (Riyria Chronicles #1) - Michael Sullivan (8/10)
    6. The Rose and the Thorn (Riyria Chronicles #2) - Michael Sullivan (8.5/10)
    7. The Death of Dulgath (Riyria Chronicles #3) - Michael Sullivan (8/10)
    8. Who Censored Roger Rabbit? - Gary Wolf (8/10)
    9. The Right Stuff - Tom Wolfe (10/10)
    10. On the Shoulders of Titans, A History of Project Gemini - NASA (8/10)
    11. A Man on the Moon - Andrew Chaikin (9/10)
    12. Apollo - Charles Murray and Catherine Cox (10/10)
    13. Failure is Not an Option - Gene Krantz (8/10)
    14. Hidden Figures - Margot Lee Shetterly (7/10)
    15. Rise of the Rocket Girls - Nathalia Holt (8.5/10)
    16. The Martian - Andy Weir (10/10)
    17. Unsouled (Cradle #1) - Will WIght (9/10)
    18. Soulsmith (Cradle #2) - Will WIght (9/10)
    19. Blackflame (Cradle #3) - Will WIght (8.5/10)
    20. Skysworn (Cradle #4) - Will WIght (8.5/10)


    These have been good quick reads for fantasy novels. Burned through them quickly.
     
  21. CBH

    CBH Well-Known Member
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    1. Marine Sniper 93 Confirmed Kills by Charles Henderson 6/10
    2. Weimar Germany: Promise and Tragedy by Eric D. Weitz 8/10
    3. Operator Down (Pike Logan #12) by Brad Taylor 7/10
    4. The Confessor (Gabriel Allon #3) by Daniel Silva 8/10
    5. Mockingjay (The Hunger Games #3) by Suzanne Collins 4/10
    6. Citizen Soldiers: The U.S. Army from the Normandy Beaches to the Bulge to the Surrender of Germany June 7, 1944 to May 7, 1945 by Stephen E. Ambrose 9/10
    7. The Enemy (Jack Reacher #8) by Lee Child 7/10
    8. Washington Black by Esi Edugyan 6/10
    9. Gunmetal Gray (Gray Man #6) by Mark Greaney 8/10
    10. Terrorism: A Critical Introduction by Richard Jackson 6/10
    11. A Death in Vienna (Gabriel Allon #4) by Daniel Silva 9/10
    12. The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank 9/10
    13. Zionism: A Very Short Introduction by Michael Stanislawski 8/10
    14. The Quest by Nelson DeMille 7/10
    15. Munich by Robert Harris 6/10
    16. Born a Crime: Stories from a South African Childhood by Trevor Noah 9/10
    17. Prince of Fire (Gabriel Allon #5) by Daniel Silva 9/10
    18. The Faithful Spy (John Wells #1) by Alex Berenson 6/10
    19. Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens 9/10
    20. Go Set A Watchmen by Harper Lee 7/10
    21. The First Wave by Alex Kershaw 8/10

    22. Palace of Treason (Red Sparrow Trilogy #2) by Jason Matthews 9/10 This was very well written and enjoyable but either because of work and events or the book it didn't move fast for me.

    23. Spymaster (Scot Harvath #18) by Brad Thor 5/10 This was the worst book of the series to me, part of that might be from reading Palace of Treason before it as this dealt with Russia as a villain as well and wasn't nearly as well done.
     
  22. billdozer

    billdozer Well-Known Member
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    1. Nyphron Rising (Riyria Revelations #3) - Michael Sullivan (8.5/10)
    2. The Emerald Storm (Riyria Revelations #4) - Michael Sullivan (7.5/10)
    3. Wintertide (Riyria Revelations #5) - Michael Sullivan (8/10)
    4. Percepliquis (Riyria Revelations #6) - Michael Sullivan (9/10)
    5. The Crown Tower (Riyria Chronicles #1) - Michael Sullivan (8/10)
    6. The Rose and the Thorn (Riyria Chronicles #2) - Michael Sullivan (8.5/10)
    7. The Death of Dulgath (Riyria Chronicles #3) - Michael Sullivan (8/10)
    8. Who Censored Roger Rabbit? - Gary Wolf (8/10)
    9. The Right Stuff - Tom Wolfe (10/10)
    10. On the Shoulders of Titans, A History of Project Gemini - NASA (8/10)
    11. A Man on the Moon - Andrew Chaikin (9/10)
    12. Apollo - Charles Murray and Catherine Cox (10/10)
    13. Failure is Not an Option - Gene Krantz (8/10)
    14. Hidden Figures - Margot Lee Shetterly (7/10)
    15. Rise of the Rocket Girls - Nathalia Holt (8.5/10)
    16. The Martian - Andy Weir (10/10)
    17. Unsouled (Cradle #1) - Will WIght (9/10)
    18. Soulsmith (Cradle #2) - Will WIght (9/10)
    19. Blackflame (Cradle #3) - Will WIght (8.5/10)
    20. Skysworn (Cradle #4) - Will WIght (8.5/10)
    21. Ghostwater (Cradle #5) - Will WIght (8.5/10)
    22. Underlord (Cradle #6) - Will WIght (8.5/10)


    All of these have been enjoyable, quick reads. I've reach the end of the published ones though. I guess he's planning on 12-15 books in this series. He just started this series in 2017, so at least he's pumping them out.
     
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  23. RonBurgundy

    RonBurgundy Well-Known Member

    Do any of you guys have time during work to read? Last year I aimed (and completed) the 52 for 52 challenge of a book a week and that was pretty difficult for me, given work, life/wife/kids/other hobbies.
    2019
    1. The Urban Monk *5.0
    2. Fire and Blood *7.0
    3. To Pixar and Beyond *7.0
    4. Dust of Dreams (Malazan 9) *7.0
    5. Pet Semetary *9.0
    6. Skyward *7.5
    7. The Crippled God (Malazan 10) *9.0
    8. Lucky Suit *5.5
    9. This is Your Brain on Parasites *8.0
    10. Sovereign *7.0
    11. One Word Kill *7.5
    12. Zoo Nebraska *3.0
    13. Becoming *7.5
    14. Brionne *8.0
    15. Dark Canyon *7.0
    16. Killoe *5.0
    17. Warbreaker *6.5
    18. The Golden Compass *6.0
    19. The Stand *9.0
    20. A short History of Nearly Everything *6.0
    21. Recursion *8.5
    22. Alien III *2.0
    23. The Dead Drink First *6.0
    24. Hyperion *7.0
    25. Tiger Trap *7.0
     
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  24. Truman

    Truman Well-Known Member
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    Sometimes I have too much time at work and can knock out some good chunks of books. Others, I have zero time.

    Right now I feel like i have a ton of time. Slow time at work, no sports to watch besides just baseball. No kids just the gf to take time away
     
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  25. RonBurgundy

    RonBurgundy Well-Known Member

    If it wasn’t for listening to audiobooks at 2-3x speed while I workout and commute, my # of books per year would be halved.
     
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  26. The Blackfish

    The Blackfish The Fish in Black
    Staff Donor TMB OG
    Alabama Crimson TideIndianapolis ColtsBook Club

    2-3x is crazy. I do 1.5x
     
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  27. Gonff

    Gonff Prince of Mousethieves
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    I read during my lunch break. That’s the main time I read during the day, along with audiobooks during the commute.
     
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  28. TC

    TC Peter, 53, from Toxteth
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    I read during breakfast (wake up early enough to have coffee and cereal at home), lunch, and while I'm having my postwork snack. Love reading and eating. Smart phone makes a perfect paperweight to hold the book open while you read
     
  29. RonBurgundy

    RonBurgundy Well-Known Member

    I do 2x for pretty much everything, slower non-fiction gets 3x. Listening at 1-1.25x drives me crazy. Same with podcasts.
     
  30. BigRed

    BigRed Well-Known Member
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    I do 2x for certain books, but 1.25-2x for other. Today, I started Dare to Lead for my commute home and kept rewinding on 1.25x speed. Very insightful book thus far.
     
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  31. BigRed

    BigRed Well-Known Member
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    1. The Future of Humanity by Machio Kaku ****
    2. The Giver by Lois Lowry ***
    3. The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes *****
    4. A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess ****
    5. An Unwanted Guest by Shari Lapena **
    6. Grain Brain by David Perlmutter ***
    7. Beartown by Fredrik Backman *****
    8. Catch-22 by Joseph Heller ***
    9. The Wife Between Us by Greer Hendricks **
    10. Us Against You by Fredrik Backman *****
    11. Rebel Yell: The Violence, Passion, a s Redemption of Stonewall Jackson by S.C. Gwynne *****
    12. The Road by Conor McCarthy **
    13. The Last Castle: The Epic Story of Love, Loss, and American Royalty in the Nation's Largest Home by Denise Kiernan **
    14. A Princess of Mars by Edgar Rice Burroughs ****
    15.The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah *****
    16. The Stranger by Albert Camus ***1/2
    17. The Time Machine by H.G. Wells ***
    18. Edgedancer (The Starlight Archive 2.5) by Brandon Sanderson *****
    19. Martin Luther: The Man Who Rediscovered God and Changed the World ****1/2
    20. The Rise and Fall of Dinosaurs by Stephen Brusatte ****
    21. Moby Dick by Herman Melville *
    22. One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez *
    23. Enders Game by Orson Scott Card ****1/2
    24. Above the Waterfall by Ron Rash ****
    25. Kite Runner by Khalid Hosseni **
    26. Black Leopard, Red Wolf by Marlon James *1/2
    27. Good Omens by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman ***
    28. David Copperfield by Charles Dickens ***
    29. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen **1/2
    30. Clouds of Glory by Michael Korda *****
    31. Outliers: The Story of Success by Malcolm Gladwell ****
    32. In the Hurricane’s Eye: The Genius of George Washington and the Victory at Yorktown by Nathaniel Philbrick ****
    33. Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis ****
    34. The Other Woman by Sandie Jones ****
    35. The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood ***
    36. What the Dog Saw and Other Adventures by Malcolm Gladwell **1/2
    37. David and Goliath: Underdogs, Misfits, and the Art of Battling Giants by Malcolm Gladwell ***1/2
    38. A River Runs Through It and Other Stories by Norman Maclean ****1/2
    39. American Gods by Neil Gaiman ****1/2
    40. Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind by Yuval Noah Harari ***
    41. Beastie Boys Book by Michael Diamond and Adam Horovitz *****
    42. Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking by Malcolm Gladwell **
    43. The Magnolia Story by Chip and Joanna Gaines ****
    44. For Whom the Bell Tolls by Ernest Hemingway ***1/2
    45. The Winter of the Witch by Katherine Arden ****1/2
    46. The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger ***
    47. Guns, Germs, and Steel by Jared Diamond *****
    48. Recursion by Blake Crouch ****1/2
    49. Churches and Churchyards of England and Wales by Richard Hayman ****
    50. Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens *****
    51. Benjamin Franklin by Walter Isaacson ****1/2
    52. The Dream House by Jess Ryder **
    53. The Farm by Joanne Ramos ***
    54. The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides *****
    55. The Lost Man by Jane Harper **1/2
    56. The Quiet Game (Penn Cage #1) - Greg Iles *****
    57. The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson ***1/2
    58. Crazy Rich Asians by Kevin Kwan ****
    59. Rebel Richmond: Life and Death in the Confederate Capital by Stephen Ash ***1/2
    60. America Before: The Key to Earth’s Lost Civilization by Graham Hancock ***1/2
    61. Einstein: His Life and Universe by Walter Isaacson *****
    62. A Confederacy of Dunces by John Kennedy Toole ****1/2 - absolutely hilarious. Highly recommend this classic
    63. The Greatest Knight by Thomas Asbridge ****1/2 - really insightful story of one of the greatest English knights in history
    64. The Silk Roads by Peter Frankopan **** - I feel like this is a must read for history buffs. I only gave it 4 stars instead of 5 because I felt like he was slightly biased with some accounts, giving more opinions than facts.
    65. Irresistible: Reclaiming the New that Jesus Unleashed for the World by Andy Stanley ****1/2 - fantastic read for Christians. The book helps separate the Old Testament from the New, teaching Christians to be Jesus following rather than Bible following.
    66. I, Robot by Isaac Asimov *** - I didn’t realize it was a collection of short stories until I started reading it. So that left me a little disappointed
    67. The Night Before by Wendy Walker * - very boring story of a woman who goes missing after an online date. I had to skim through the second half.
    68. Dune by Frank Herbert ***** - one of my favorite books I have read. I don’t know why it took me so long to check this out. Also, I had no idea it was a big inspiration for the Star Wars movies.
    69. The Cooking Gene by Michael W. Twitty ** - 2018 James Beard award winner. its an African American chef’s memoir and how the Deep South w/ roots from Africa have shaped culinary cuisine. But I found myself losing interest because his prose forced on poetry and run on sentences, and his language was over complicated at times. Felt like I was reading a scientific journal, mixed with Stephen King, mixed with Shakespeare.
    70. The Guest Book by Sarah Blake *1/2 - the only redeeming quality this novel had for me is that I was drawn by her writing style. Other than that, I lost interest in the story and felt like the timelines were all over the place. It is a novel that spans three generations of a wealthy family living in Maine. But it was kindve boring to hear about their “rich people problems”. I gave up halfway through.
    71. Where’d You Go Bernadette by Marie Semple **** - I really enjoyed this quick read and felt like the characters had so much emotion. Excellent beach read.
    72. The Byzantine World War by Nick Holmes **** - a very brief overview of the collapse of the Byzantium empire. I found the account well researched and inspiring to read more about some of the events, especially the Crusades.
     
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  32. billdozer

    billdozer Well-Known Member
    Donor
    Clemson TigersCarolina Panthers

    1. Nyphron Rising (Riyria Revelations #3) - Michael Sullivan (8.5/10)
    2. The Emerald Storm (Riyria Revelations #4) - Michael Sullivan (7.5/10)
    3. Wintertide (Riyria Revelations #5) - Michael Sullivan (8/10)
    4. Percepliquis (Riyria Revelations #6) - Michael Sullivan (9/10)
    5. The Crown Tower (Riyria Chronicles #1) - Michael Sullivan (8/10)
    6. The Rose and the Thorn (Riyria Chronicles #2) - Michael Sullivan (8.5/10)
    7. The Death of Dulgath (Riyria Chronicles #3) - Michael Sullivan (8/10)
    8. Who Censored Roger Rabbit? - Gary Wolf (8/10)
    9. The Right Stuff - Tom Wolfe (10/10)
    10. On the Shoulders of Titans, A History of Project Gemini - NASA (8/10)
    11. A Man on the Moon - Andrew Chaikin (9/10)
    12. Apollo - Charles Murray and Catherine Cox (10/10)
    13. Failure is Not an Option - Gene Krantz (8/10)
    14. Hidden Figures - Margot Lee Shetterly (7/10)
    15. Rise of the Rocket Girls - Nathalia Holt (8.5/10)
    16. The Martian - Andy Weir (10/10)
    17. Unsouled (Cradle #1) - Will WIght (9/10)
    18. Soulsmith (Cradle #2) - Will WIght (9/10)
    19. Blackflame (Cradle #3) - Will WIght (8.5/10)
    20. Skysworn (Cradle #4) - Will WIght (8.5/10)
    21. Ghostwater (Cradle #5) - Will WIght (8.5/10)
    22. Underlord (Cradle #6) - Will WIght (8.5/10)
    23. House of Blades (The Traveler's Gate #1) - Will WIght (8.5/10)
     
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  33. TC

    TC Peter, 53, from Toxteth
    Donor
    South Carolina GamecocksCarolina PanthersCarolina Hurricanes

    BigRed, Tangman and Truman like this.
  34. Truman

    Truman Well-Known Member
    Donor
    Missouri TigersSt. Louis CardinalsChicago BullsSt. Louis BluesEvertonBook Club

    One day you’ll be as cool as them.
     
  35. Kevintensity

    Kevintensity Poster/Posting Game Coordinator
    Donor
    Florida State SeminolesAtlanta BravesTampa Bay BuccaneersNashville PredatorsCalgary FlamesPoker

    1) The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson 5/10
    2) The First Conspiracy: The Secret Plot to Kill George Washington by Brad Meltzer 9/10
    3) Astrophysics for People in a Hurry by Neil DeGrasse Tyson 8/10
    4) Beartown by Fredrik Backman 10/10
    5) Shortest Way Home by Peter Buttigieg 9/10
    6) Dark Matter by Blake Crouch 10/10
    7) Supernormal Stimuli by Deirdre Barrett 8/10
    8) 1776 by David McCullough 7/10
    9) Popular: the power of likeability in a status obsessed world by Mitch Prinstein 7/10
    10) Promise not to tell by Jennifer McMahon 6/10
    11) Us Against You by Fredrick Backman 10/10
    12) The Uninhabitable Earth by David Wallace Wells 7.5/10
    13) The System: the glory and scandal of big time college football by Jeff Benedict and Armen Keteyian 9/10
    14) A Man Called Ove by Fredrick Backman 10/10
    15) When the Game was Ours by Larry Bird, Magic Johnson, Jackie MacMullan 8.5/10
    16) The Breach by Patrick Lee 9/10
    17) The 1997 Masters by Tiger Woods 8/10
    18) Slaughterhouse Five by Kurt Vonnegut 8/10
    19) Naive. Super by Erlend Loe 8.5/10
    20) My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She's Sorry by Fredrick Backman 7/10
    21) Freakonomics by Levitt & Dubner 8.5/10
    22) Ghost Country by Patrick Lee 8.5/10
    23) Deep Sky by Patrick Lee 7.5/10
    24) A Canticle for Leibowitz by Walter M. Miller 7/10
    25) Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens 10/10
    26) And Every Morning The Way Home Gets Longer And Longer by Fredrick Backman 8.5/10
    27) The rise and fall of the second largest empire in history: how Genghis Khan's Mongols almost conquered the world by Thomas Craughwell 8/10
    28) Pines by Blake Crouch 8.5/10
    29) Alone on the wall by Alex Honnold 6.5/10
    30) Wayward by Blake Crouch 8/10
    31) In the garden of beasts by Erik Larson 8.5/10
    32) The Last Town by Blake Crouch 9/10
    33) Anne Frank The Diary of a Young Girl 8.5/10
    34) Recursion by Blake Crouch 8.5/10
     
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  36. ukcats8

    ukcats8 smugapari
    Donor
    Kentucky Wildcats

    Just finished binging a few books in "Expeditionary Force," a series by Craig Alanson. A few of these seem to get cranked out each year, and although dumb and cheesy, time flies. Highly recommend the audible version with R.C. Bray.

    https://www.goodreads.com/series/185650-expeditionary-force
     
    Truman likes this.
  37. TC

    TC Peter, 53, from Toxteth
    Donor
    South Carolina GamecocksCarolina PanthersCarolina Hurricanes

    1. Sweetness and Power: The Place of Sugar in Modern History -- Sidney Mintz (6/10)
    2. Popularity: The Power of Likability in a Status-Obsessed World -- Mitch Prinstein (9/10)
    3. Gang Leader for a Day: A Rogue Sociologist Takes to the Streets / Sudhir Venkatesh (10/10)
    4. Grunt: The Curious Science of Humans at War / Mary Roach (4/10)
    5. Supernormal Stimuli: How Primal Urges Overran Their Evolutionary Purpose / Deirdre Barrett. (10/10)
    6. Confessions of an Economic Hit Man / John Perkins. (10/10)
    7. Musicophilia: Tales of Music and the Brain / Oliver Sacks (8/10)
    8. Tao Te Ching / Lao Tzu (10/10)
    9. Homo Deus: A Brief History of Tomorrow / Yuval Noah Harari (10/10)
    10. Bad Samaritans: The Myth of Free Trade and the Secret History of Capitalism / Ha Joon Chang. (7/10)
    11. Under The Banner Of Heaven: A Story Of Violent Faith / Jon Krakauer (8/10)
    12. Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance: An Inquiry Into Values / Robert Pirsig (9/10)
    13. Ever Since Darwin: Reflections in Natural History / Stephen Jay Gould (7.5/10)
    14. Mindset: The New Psychology of Success (How We Can Learn to Fulfill Our Potential) / Carol Dweck (6/10)
    15. Animal Spirits: How Human Psychology Drives The Economy And Why It Matters For Global Capitalism / George Akerloff and Robert Shiller (7.5/10)
    16. Ways of Seeing / John Berger (7/10)
    17. Factfulness: Ten Reasons We're Wrong About The World And Why Things Are Better Than You Think / Hans Rosling (7/10)
    18. For Whom The Bell Tolls / Ernest Hemingway (8.5/10)
    19. This Explains Everything: Deep, Beautiful, and Elegant Theories of How the World Works / edited by John Brockman (5/10)
    20. The Warmth Of Other Suns: The Epic Story Of America's Great Migration / Isabel Wilkerson (10/10)
    21. Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil: A Savannah Story / John Berendt (6.5/10)

    22. How Not To Be Wrong: The Power Of Mathematical Thinking / Jordan Ellenberg (7.5/10)
    Solid book along the lines of Nate Silver's "The Signal and the Noise"

    23. Sam The Cat Detective / Linda Stewart (10/10)
    A young adult novel I've had since the book fair at school days and reread in a day recently for pleasure

    24. Washington's Crossing (Pivotal Moments in American History) / David Hackett Fischer (7/10)
    Pretty good but I find the whole "history is made by people making choices and not by external factors" argument to be a little :meh:. Also, is the word "magisterial" ever used except in a review of one of these type giant history books?

    Up next--

    [​IMG]
     
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  38. BP

    BP Bout to Regulate.
    Donor
    Atlanta BravesGeorgia BulldogsAtlanta Falcons

    What an interesting life. Sucks he went out the way he did tho.

    Writer, Sailor, Soldier, Spy: Ernest Hemingway's Secret Adventures, 1935-1961

     
    #288 BP, Jul 31, 2019
    Last edited: Sep 8, 2019
    Tangman, Kevintensity and Truman like this.
  39. billdozer

    billdozer Well-Known Member
    Donor
    Clemson TigersCarolina Panthers

    1. Nyphron Rising (Riyria Revelations #3) - Michael Sullivan (8.5/10)
    2. The Emerald Storm (Riyria Revelations #4) - Michael Sullivan (7.5/10)
    3. Wintertide (Riyria Revelations #5) - Michael Sullivan (8/10)
    4. Percepliquis (Riyria Revelations #6) - Michael Sullivan (9/10)
    5. The Crown Tower (Riyria Chronicles #1) - Michael Sullivan (8/10)
    6. The Rose and the Thorn (Riyria Chronicles #2) - Michael Sullivan (8.5/10)
    7. The Death of Dulgath (Riyria Chronicles #3) - Michael Sullivan (8/10)
    8. Who Censored Roger Rabbit? - Gary Wolf (8/10)
    9. The Right Stuff - Tom Wolfe (10/10)
    10. On the Shoulders of Titans, A History of Project Gemini - NASA (8/10)
    11. A Man on the Moon - Andrew Chaikin (9/10)
    12. Apollo - Charles Murray and Catherine Cox (10/10)
    13. Failure is Not an Option - Gene Krantz (8/10)
    14. Hidden Figures - Margot Lee Shetterly (7/10)
    15. Rise of the Rocket Girls - Nathalia Holt (8.5/10)
    16. The Martian - Andy Weir (10/10)
    17. Unsouled (Cradle #1) - Will WIght (9/10)
    18. Soulsmith (Cradle #2) - Will WIght (9/10)
    19. Blackflame (Cradle #3) - Will WIght (8.5/10)
    20. Skysworn (Cradle #4) - Will WIght (8.5/10)
    21. Ghostwater (Cradle #5) - Will WIght (8.5/10)
    22. Underlord (Cradle #6) - Will WIght (8.5/10)
    23. House of Blades (The Traveler's Gate #1) - Will WIght (8.5/10)
    24. The Crimson Vault (The Traveler's Gate #2) - Will WIght (8.5/10)
    25. City of Light (The Traveler's Gate #3) - Will WIght (8.5/10)

    This series was another good quick read of a fantasy series.
     
  40. billdozer

    billdozer Well-Known Member
    Donor
    Clemson TigersCarolina Panthers

    1. Nyphron Rising (Riyria Revelations #3) - Michael Sullivan (8.5/10)
    2. The Emerald Storm (Riyria Revelations #4) - Michael Sullivan (7.5/10)
    3. Wintertide (Riyria Revelations #5) - Michael Sullivan (8/10)
    4. Percepliquis (Riyria Revelations #6) - Michael Sullivan (9/10)
    5. The Crown Tower (Riyria Chronicles #1) - Michael Sullivan (8/10)
    6. The Rose and the Thorn (Riyria Chronicles #2) - Michael Sullivan (8.5/10)
    7. The Death of Dulgath (Riyria Chronicles #3) - Michael Sullivan (8/10)
    8. Who Censored Roger Rabbit? - Gary Wolf (8/10)
    9. The Right Stuff - Tom Wolfe (10/10)
    10. On the Shoulders of Titans, A History of Project Gemini - NASA (8/10)
    11. A Man on the Moon - Andrew Chaikin (9/10)
    12. Apollo - Charles Murray and Catherine Cox (10/10)
    13. Failure is Not an Option - Gene Krantz (8/10)
    14. Hidden Figures - Margot Lee Shetterly (7/10)
    15. Rise of the Rocket Girls - Nathalia Holt (8.5/10)
    16. The Martian - Andy Weir (10/10)
    17. Unsouled (Cradle #1) - Will WIght (9/10)
    18. Soulsmith (Cradle #2) - Will WIght (9/10)
    19. Blackflame (Cradle #3) - Will WIght (8.5/10)
    20. Skysworn (Cradle #4) - Will WIght (8.5/10)
    21. Ghostwater (Cradle #5) - Will WIght (8.5/10)
    22. Underlord (Cradle #6) - Will WIght (8.5/10)
    23. House of Blades (The Traveler's Gate #1) - Will WIght (8.5/10)
    24. The Crimson Vault (The Traveler's Gate #2) - Will WIght (8.5/10)
    25. City of Light (The Traveler's Gate #3) - Will WIght (8.5/10)
    26. Red Sister (Book of the Ancestor #1) - Mark Lawrence (9.5/10)
     
    #290 billdozer, Aug 2, 2019
    Last edited: Aug 9, 2019
    Kevintensity and CBH like this.
  41. BP

    BP Bout to Regulate.
    Donor
    Atlanta BravesGeorgia BulldogsAtlanta Falcons

    Maybe one of the most eye opening books I've ever read. First saw a TED talk then listened to him on Rogan.
    Why We Sleep: Unlocking the Power of Sleep and Dreams

     
    BigRed, Tangman and TC like this.
  42. billdozer

    billdozer Well-Known Member
    Donor
    Clemson TigersCarolina Panthers

    1. Nyphron Rising (Riyria Revelations #3) - Michael Sullivan (8.5/10)
    2. The Emerald Storm (Riyria Revelations #4) - Michael Sullivan (7.5/10)
    3. Wintertide (Riyria Revelations #5) - Michael Sullivan (8/10)
    4. Percepliquis (Riyria Revelations #6) - Michael Sullivan (9/10)
    5. The Crown Tower (Riyria Chronicles #1) - Michael Sullivan (8/10)
    6. The Rose and the Thorn (Riyria Chronicles #2) - Michael Sullivan (8.5/10)
    7. The Death of Dulgath (Riyria Chronicles #3) - Michael Sullivan (8/10)
    8. Who Censored Roger Rabbit? - Gary Wolf (8/10)
    9. The Right Stuff - Tom Wolfe (10/10)
    10. On the Shoulders of Titans, A History of Project Gemini - NASA (8/10)
    11. A Man on the Moon - Andrew Chaikin (9/10)
    12. Apollo - Charles Murray and Catherine Cox (10/10)
    13. Failure is Not an Option - Gene Krantz (8/10)
    14. Hidden Figures - Margot Lee Shetterly (7/10)
    15. Rise of the Rocket Girls - Nathalia Holt (8.5/10)
    16. The Martian - Andy Weir (10/10)
    17. Unsouled (Cradle #1) - Will WIght (9/10)
    18. Soulsmith (Cradle #2) - Will WIght (9/10)
    19. Blackflame (Cradle #3) - Will WIght (8.5/10)
    20. Skysworn (Cradle #4) - Will WIght (8.5/10)
    21. Ghostwater (Cradle #5) - Will WIght (8.5/10)
    22. Underlord (Cradle #6) - Will WIght (8.5/10)
    23. House of Blades (The Traveler's Gate #1) - Will WIght (8.5/10)
    24. The Crimson Vault (The Traveler's Gate #2) - Will WIght (8.5/10)
    25. City of Light (The Traveler's Gate #3) - Will WIght (8.5/10)
    26. Red Sister (Book of the Ancestor #1) - Mark Lawrence (9.5/10)
    27. Grey Sister (Book of the Ancestor #2) - Mark Lawrence (9.5/10)
    28. Holy Sister (Book of the Ancestor #3) - Mark Lawrence (8.5/10)
     
    BigRed, Tangman, CBH and 1 other person like this.
  43. TC

    TC Peter, 53, from Toxteth
    Donor
    South Carolina GamecocksCarolina PanthersCarolina Hurricanes

    1. Sweetness and Power: The Place of Sugar in Modern History -- Sidney Mintz (6/10)
    2. Popularity: The Power of Likability in a Status-Obsessed World -- Mitch Prinstein (9/10)
    3. Gang Leader for a Day: A Rogue Sociologist Takes to the Streets / Sudhir Venkatesh (10/10)
    4. Grunt: The Curious Science of Humans at War / Mary Roach (4/10)
    5. Supernormal Stimuli: How Primal Urges Overran Their Evolutionary Purpose / Deirdre Barrett. (10/10)
    6. Confessions of an Economic Hit Man / John Perkins. (10/10)
    7. Musicophilia: Tales of Music and the Brain / Oliver Sacks (8/10)
    8. Tao Te Ching / Lao Tzu (10/10)
    9. Homo Deus: A Brief History of Tomorrow / Yuval Noah Harari (10/10)
    10. Bad Samaritans: The Myth of Free Trade and the Secret History of Capitalism / Ha Joon Chang. (7/10)
    11. Under The Banner Of Heaven: A Story Of Violent Faith / Jon Krakauer (8/10)
    12. Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance: An Inquiry Into Values / Robert Pirsig (9/10)
    13. Ever Since Darwin: Reflections in Natural History / Stephen Jay Gould (7.5/10)
    14. Mindset: The New Psychology of Success (How We Can Learn to Fulfill Our Potential) / Carol Dweck (6/10)
    15. Animal Spirits: How Human Psychology Drives The Economy And Why It Matters For Global Capitalism / George Akerloff and Robert Shiller (7.5/10)
    16. Ways of Seeing / John Berger (7/10)
    17. Factfulness: Ten Reasons We're Wrong About The World And Why Things Are Better Than You Think / Hans Rosling (7/10)
    18. For Whom The Bell Tolls / Ernest Hemingway (8.5/10)
    19. This Explains Everything: Deep, Beautiful, and Elegant Theories of How the World Works / edited by John Brockman (5/10)
    20. The Warmth Of Other Suns: The Epic Story Of America's Great Migration / Isabel Wilkerson (10/10)
    21. Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil: A Savannah Story / John Berendt (6.5/10)
    22. How Not To Be Wrong: The Power Of Mathematical Thinking / Jordan Ellenberg (7.5/10)
    23. Sam The Cat Detective / Linda Stewart (10/10)
    24. Washington's Crossing (Pivotal Moments in American History) / David Hackett Fischer (7/10)

    25. Genome: The Autobiography of a Species in 23 Chapters / Matt Ridley (9/10)
    First book I've read by Matt Ridley. He's very good as a science writer. It once in a while got a little "in the weeds" for me and I'd skim til I kind of got to the point, but I'm rating the book so high because overall it was easy to read and because the information in it is so important and fascinating. Like the person typing this right now is just a vehicle built out of these little things called genes using their special language of DNA. I'm nothing but what they put together. It's the craziest feeling ever and I've taken psychedelic drugs. Crazy part is the book's now 20 years old so I wonder how much more cutting edge stuff there is now

    Up next--
    [​IMG]
     
    BigRed and Tangman like this.
  44. billdozer

    billdozer Well-Known Member
    Donor
    Clemson TigersCarolina Panthers

    1. Nyphron Rising (Riyria Revelations #3) - Michael Sullivan (8.5/10)
    2. The Emerald Storm (Riyria Revelations #4) - Michael Sullivan (7.5/10)
    3. Wintertide (Riyria Revelations #5) - Michael Sullivan (8/10)
    4. Percepliquis (Riyria Revelations #6) - Michael Sullivan (9/10)
    5. The Crown Tower (Riyria Chronicles #1) - Michael Sullivan (8/10)
    6. The Rose and the Thorn (Riyria Chronicles #2) - Michael Sullivan (8.5/10)
    7. The Death of Dulgath (Riyria Chronicles #3) - Michael Sullivan (8/10)
    8. Who Censored Roger Rabbit? - Gary Wolf (8/10)
    9. The Right Stuff - Tom Wolfe (10/10)
    10. On the Shoulders of Titans, A History of Project Gemini - NASA (8/10)
    11. A Man on the Moon - Andrew Chaikin (9/10)
    12. Apollo - Charles Murray and Catherine Cox (10/10)
    13. Failure is Not an Option - Gene Krantz (8/10)
    14. Hidden Figures - Margot Lee Shetterly (7/10)
    15. Rise of the Rocket Girls - Nathalia Holt (8.5/10)
    16. The Martian - Andy Weir (10/10)
    17. Unsouled (Cradle #1) - Will WIght (9/10)
    18. Soulsmith (Cradle #2) - Will WIght (9/10)
    19. Blackflame (Cradle #3) - Will WIght (8.5/10)
    20. Skysworn (Cradle #4) - Will WIght (8.5/10)
    21. Ghostwater (Cradle #5) - Will WIght (8.5/10)
    22. Underlord (Cradle #6) - Will WIght (8.5/10)
    23. House of Blades (The Traveler's Gate #1) - Will WIght (8.5/10)
    24. The Crimson Vault (The Traveler's Gate #2) - Will WIght (8.5/10)
    25. City of Light (The Traveler's Gate #3) - Will WIght (8.5/10)
    26. Red Sister (Book of the Ancestor #1) - Mark Lawrence (9.5/10)
    27. Grey Sister (Book of the Ancestor #2) - Mark Lawrence (9.5/10)
    28. Holy Sister (Book of the Ancestor #3) - Mark Lawrence (8.5/10)
    29. Prince of Thorns (The Broken Empire #1) - Mark Lawrence (8.5/10)
    30. King of Thorns (The Broken Empire #2) - Mark Lawrence (8.5/10)


    These are pretty good, along the same vein as the Joe Abercrombie books as far as grim dark fantasy.
     
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  45. Funshot Residue

    Funshot Residue Mammoth Stabber
    Donor

    Recently read "Station Eleven" and enjoyed it though I am a non science fiction fan. I suppose I make exceptions for near future dystopian fiction. Easy read.
    Then "The Bastard Brigade" historical nonfiction about the espionage of the German atomic program during and after WW2. Great fun, and educational to boot.
     
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  46. Truman

    Truman Well-Known Member
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    Missouri TigersSt. Louis CardinalsChicago BullsSt. Louis BluesEvertonBook Club

    Station Eleven has been on my list for a while
     
  47. Room 15

    Room 15 Mi equipo esta Los Tigres
    Donor
    Auburn TigersAtlanta BravesAtlanta FalconsUnited States Men's National Soccer Team

    I’m gonna get in this thread. Keep my GoodReads up to date but will be nice to discuss. Some of yalls lists are crazy. List coming.
     
  48. Room 15

    Room 15 Mi equipo esta Los Tigres
    Donor
    Auburn TigersAtlanta BravesAtlanta FalconsUnited States Men's National Soccer Team

    1) How To Change Your Mind - Michael Pollan *****
    2) Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat - Samin Nosrat ****
    3) Crossing the Chasm - Geoffrey Moore ***
    4) Catcher in the Rye - JD Salinger ****
    5) Man's Search for Meaning - Victor E Frankl ****
    6) The E-Myth Revisited - Michael Gerber ****
    7) The Road - Cormac McCarthy ****
    8) Marching Powder - Thomas McFadden ****
    9) Tribe - Sebastian Junger ****
    10) Perks of Being a Wallflower - Stephen Chbosky ****
    11) Gut - Giulia Enders ****
    12) The Hard Thing About Hard Things - Ben Horowitz ***
    13) Awaken the Giant Within - Tony Robbins ***
    14) The Longevity Diet - Valter Longo ****
    15) Losing My Virginity - Richard Branson ***

    Currently Reading - Better Angels of Our Nature by Stephen Pinker - Long ass book and pretty verbose at times.
     
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  49. Truman

    Truman Well-Known Member
    Donor
    Missouri TigersSt. Louis CardinalsChicago BullsSt. Louis BluesEvertonBook Club

    1. Consent to Kill (Mitch Rapp #7) by Vince Flynn (9/10)
    2. Warmth of Other Suns: The Epic Story of America's Great Migration, by Isabell Wilkerson (9.5/10)
    3. Act of Treason (Mitch Rapp #8) by Vince Flynn (9/10)
    4. Citizen Soldiers by Stephen Ambrose (8.5/10)
    5. Protect and Defend (Mitch Rapp #9) by Vince Flynn (9/10)
    6. Extreme Measures (Mitch Rapp #10) by Vince Flynn (8/10)
    7. Pursuit of Honor (Mitch Rapp #11) by Vince Flynn (7.5/10)
    8. American Assassin (Mitch Rapp #12) by Vince Flynn (6/10)
    9. No Exit by Taylor Adams (7.5/10)
    10. An Anonymous Girl by Greer Hendrick (6.5/10)
    11. Uncle Tom's Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe (8.5/10)
    12. Last Man (Mitch Rapp #13) by Kyle Mills (6.5/10)
    13. The Survivor (Mitch Rapp #14) by Kyle Mills (6.5/10)
    14. Star Wars: The Queen's Shadow by EK Johnston (8/10)
    15. American Spy by Lauren Wilkenson (9/10)
    16. Five Families: The Rise, Decline, And Resurgence of America's Most Powerful Mafia Empires by Salwyn Raab (9/10)
    17. Tiamat's Wrath (The Expanse #8) by James S A Corey (10/10
    20 Cherry by Nico Walker (8/.510)
    21. The Spy and the Traitor: The Greatest Espionage Story of the Cold War, by Ben Macintyre (8/10)
    22. Star Wars: Master and Apprentice, by Claudia Gray (8/10)
    23. Say Nothing: A True Story of Murder and Memory in Northern Ireland, by Patrick Radden Keefe (9/10)
    24. Here and Now And Then, by Mike Chen (7/10)
    25. The White Darkness by David Grann (6/10)
    26. Where the Crawdads Sing, by Delia Owens (9/10)
    27. The Republic for Which it Stands: The United States During Reconstruction and the Gilded Ageby Richard White (9/10)
    28. It by Stephen King (8/10)
    29. Outland by Dennis E Taylor (8.5/10)
    30. Hunting LeRoux by Elaine Shannon (8/10)
    31-33 Wayward Pines Trilogy by Blake Crouch (7.5/10)
    34. Midnight in Chernobyl, by Adam Higginbotham (8.5/10)
    35. The Cuckoo's Calling by Robert Galbreath/JK Rowling (6.5/10)
    36. Cari Mora by Thomas Harris (6.5/10)
    37. Star Wars: Alphabet Squadron by Alexander Freed (7.5/10)
    38. The River by Peter Heller (8.5/10)
    39. Recursion by Blake Crouch (9/10)
    40. The British Are Coming by Rick Atkinson (9/10)
    41. Fleishman is in Trouble by Taffy Brodesser-Akner (8.5/10)
    42. Red War (Mitch Rapp #17) by Kyle Mills (9/10)
    42. The Quiet Game (Penn Cage #1) by Greg Iles (9.5/10)
    43. Turning Angel (Penn Cage #2) by Greg Iles (9/10)
    44. The Chain by Adrian McKinty (8/10)
    45. The New Girl (Gabriel Allon #19) by Daniel Silva (8.5/10)
    46. Star Wars: Thrawn: Treason, by Timothy Zahn (6.5/10)
    47. The Devil's Punchbowl (Pen Cage #3) by Gregg Illes (6.6/10)
    48. Natchez Burning (Penn Cage #4) by Greg Iles (8/10)
    49. Dark Age (Red Rising #4) by Pierce Brown
    50. My Sister, The Serial Killer, by Oyinkan Braithewaite


    New Girl -
    Allon books are great. This one was better than the last few. Really enjoyed it

    Thrawn -
    meh but worth reading if youre an uber SW nerd

    Penn Cage -
    Love these books. Kicking myself for waiting too long to get into them. Punchbowl was good, but my least favorite of the bunch. Nantchez Burnign was amazing.

    My Sister, The Serial Killer - Set in lagos, the main character is a nurse, whose sister keeps dating dudes that end up dying. This is a really good quick read. Perfect for a beach day.

    Dark Age -
    :jizz: :jizz: :jizz: :jizz: :jizz:
     
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  50. Tangman

    Tangman Well-Known Member
    Donor
    North Carolina State WolfpackCharlotte HornetsWashington Football TeamEvertonBook Club

    1. Citizen Soldiers: The US Army from the Normandy Beaches to the Bulge to the Surrender of Germany (Stephen E. Ambrose) - 8/10
    2. The Master and Margarita (Mikhail Bulgakov - Burgin/O'Connor Translation) - 9.5/10
    3. The Personality Brokers: The Strange History of Myers-Briggs and the Birth of Personality Testing (Merve Emre) - 6.5/10
    4. Washington Black (Esi Edugyan) - 6/10
    5. Hello World: Being Human in the Age of Algorithms (Hannah Fry) - 8.5/10
    6. SPQR: A History of Ancient Rome (Mary Beard) - 9/10
    7. Before the Storm: Barry Goldwater and the Unmaking of the American Consensus (Rick Perlstein) - 9.5/10
    8. The Right Stuff (Tom Wolfe) - 9/10
    9. Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair that Changed America (Erik Larson) - 10/10
    10. Empire of the Summer Moon: Quanah Parker and the Rise and Fall of the Comanches, the Most Powerful Indian Tribe in American History (S.C. Gwynne) - 9/10 -
    11. Where The Crawdads Sing (Delia Owens) - 8/10
    12. Exit West (Mohsin Hamid) - 6/10
    13. Ghost Wars: The Secret History of the CIA, Afghanistan, and Bin Laden, from the Soviet Invasion to September 10, 2001 (Steve Coll) - 9/10
    14. Predictably Irrational: The Hidden Forces That Shape Our Decisions (Dan Ariely) - 7.5/10 -
    I liked this one and Ariely is a good writer for a behavioral economist. Honestly, I may have given it a higher score had I not read Thinking, Fast and Slow last year. A general primer on behavioral economics, it covers many of the same topics, just not as in-depth. Almost like if Thinking was written for a wider audience ala Freakonomics.
    15. Notes From Underground (Fyodor Dostoyevsky - Pevear/Volokhonsky Translation) - 8/10 - The first Dostoyevsky I've read and I liked it a lot. It's split into two parts; in the first, the unnamed narrator rambles on the human condition. The second part is the "plot" of the novel, something of an explanation as to why he feels that way. Believe that this work was one of the first real explorations of existentialism. It would help your understanding to read a copy that puts this piece into historical context; in many ways, this work was an answer to Chernyshevsky's "What Is To Be Done?". Anyway, the narrator is petty, vindictive, bitter, and often provokes disgust. That said, I found in this man one of the truest reflections of anxiety I've ever seen on paper. Worth a read I think.
    16. Nixonland: The Rise of a President and the Fracturing of America (Rick Perlstein) - 9/10 - Another very good one from Perlstein. More of a political and cultural history of the US from 65-72 than a Nixon-focused book but you can't tell that story without focusing on Dick. One can draw a lot of parallels between Nixon's focus on the culture wars and the current GOP. As Perlstein said, in many ways we are still living in Nixonland. Maybe not quite as good as the previous volume on Goldwater IMO but still very strong. Look forward to reading the 3rd volume, The Invisible Bridge, next. Reaganland from Perlstein comes out in 2020, for what that's worth.
    17. Bonfire of the Vanities (Tom Wolfe) - 8.5/10 - A TC rec and very enjoyable. A good cultural critique of the US and New York in the '80s. Won't give away the plot but it's a breeze to read and fun. Wolfe has these little pet phrases that he likes to repeatedly insert in both of the works I've read (in this one, it was when one of the main characters refers to himself as "Master of the Universe") that I find slightly annoying but it didn't take too much enjoyment away. I think he wants you to dislike the main character and he is odious in many ways but I found myself sympathizing with him, too.

    Up Next: 1) Over the Edge of the World: Magellan's Terrifying Circumnavigation of the Globe 2) Under the Banner of Heaven: A Story of Violent Faith 3) Mindhunter: Inside the FBI's Elite Serial Crime Unit
     
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