Reading Suggestions?

[Sikander]

Originally posted by Ecthy
Er... whatever. Apparently she was a virgin at the time, and her boyfriend was a guy known for claiming his own virginity to create trust, deflower, and break up soon after. My friend fingered her but never told her what an a$$hole her b/f was.

I guess he thought she'd finger that out for herself.

[Ecthy]

bump: What Turtledove book is a good read? Just ordering First Man in Rome by McCullough and Red Storm Rising by Clancy (neve rread any Clancy before, so...)

[Ecthy]

Obviously there's a T. series about Aliens landing on Earth during WWII. Don't fancy that.

The one with WWI fought between USA and CSA looks good though. Any else?

[lord of the mark]

history
Currently reading Robert Conquest "Harvest of Sorrow" on the terror-famine in the Ukraine.

Recently read Rick Atkins "An Army at Dawn" on Operation Torch and the American Army in North Africa, 1942-1942.

Totally Different "After the Ice" The world in 10,000 BCE.

Biography - John Adams, by David McCullough

Alt history - I like what if such as are found on soc.history.what-if but dont go in much for AH fiction. However if you like Turtledove, you might like Island in the Sea of Time by SM Stirling.

[Ecthy]

Went with the two I mentioned and Gödel Escher Bach

[Lorizael]

Originally posted by Ecthy
Obviously there's a T. series about Aliens landing on Earth during WWII. Don't fancy that.

Many years ago I read several of these before I realized they weren't any good.

[Lord Avalon]

Originally posted by Ecthy
Obviously there's a T. series about Aliens landing on Earth during WWII. Don't fancy that.

The one with WWI fought between USA and CSA looks good though. Any else?

After "How Few Remain" comes a whole host of books in that alternate world:

The Great War
American Front
Walk in Hell
Breakthroughs

American Empire
Blood and Iron
The Center Cannot Hold
The Victorious Opposition

Settling Accounts
Return Engagement (which I'm currently reading)
Drive to the East
The Grapple

I like the ones that take place during wartime more than the others, though you might find interesting the political & social events that occur and how they differ from actual history.

Turtledove does tend to get repetitive, with characters stating their views time & again, but it hasn't stopped me from enjoying it overall.

[Ecthy]

What is the American Empire cycle about?

[RoboCon]

Hello there! I see you are discussing Giants of literature. Perhaps I can be of assistance.

This entire thread has been plagarized. Spare us your liberal book club announcements. While hardly an original notion remains, I have divided this list into pre 9-11 and post 9-11 literature.

Pre 9-11:

• The Constitution by James Madison and other notable white people
• Mein Kampf by Adolf Hitler
• Overdrive by William F Buckley
• The National Review
• The Bible by Jesus and other notable white people

Post 9-11

• Godless: The Church of Liberalism by Ann Coulter
• Islamic Imperialism: A History by Efraim Karsh
• Defeating Jihad by Serge Trifkovic
• Hillary Clinton: Can She Be Stopped? by John Podhoretz
• Massive Knockers #3 by Ron Jeremy

9-11 changed everything. The proof is in the pudding, I will count the seconds until Asher denies it, interestingly, and in a patronizing tone.

[Zkribbler]

Originally posted by RoboCon [*]The Bible by Jesus and other notable white people

Since they were all Semites, wouldn't they have been just a little bit brown??

[*]Godless: The Church of Liberalism by Ann Coulter

She is such a hate-mongering piece of ****. Maybe someday God will replace that stone in her breast with a human heart.

[Lord Avalon]

Originally posted by Ecthy
What is the American Empire cycle about?

The period between WWs I and II.

[Ecthy]

Any of those books that is real cool?

[aneeshm]

Two books whose style I found very refreshing and engaging , and which do a brilliant job of opening up the Muslim world to the Western mind , both by V.S. Naipaul , in the order in which they should be read :

1) Among the Believers
2) Beyond Belief


Both of them are brilliant travel writing . And not your typical travel writing - this is a person who cuts to the heart of the culture he is writing about , in the same way other great historic travel authors did - from a distinct cultural viewpoint . Definitely worth reading and re-reading .




In fantasy I can recommend , by Samit Basu , the book "The Simoquin Prohpecies" , and its sequel , "The Manticore's Secret" ( note that they are a trilogy , the third book of which is yet to be published ) . Both are very light but very , very engaging and engrossing reading . I loved them both . I'd recommend you try them . This guy is the best Indian fantasy author out there .

[Lord Avalon]

Originally posted by Ecthy
Any of those books that is real cool?

I suppose it depends on what you find cool. As I said, I prefer the ones where battles are going on (so that's probably the Great War and Settling Accounts parts). The others are interesting in how events parallel history and how they differ (if you like that sort of stuff), but some may find them tedioius.

With series I like to read from the beginning, so I know the background and how things develop, but sometimes during the interbellum books I want to give him the hurry up sign - "C'mon, get to WWII already!"

Some of the material I found disturbing, like how the period of slavery was extended because the CSA won the Civil War, and the rise of his Hitler-like character after the CSA lost WWI. (Also I'm in the North, so my sympathies are with the Union.) It's not a pretty world he's created.

[duke o' york]

Can I leap in and recommend both Don Quixote and Moby Dick?

No?
Well they're both well worth reading anyway.