| Username |
Post |
| Dilasha |
Posted
on 20-Jun-03 04:08 PM
Folks! It's that time of the year where people get a little extra time to to relax, go on vacations, have picnics in their backyards, play volleyball, soak up the sun reading all kinds of books they've heard about. SO! what have you got in your bookshelf for this summer? This is the thread for you to recommend us some good books that you've read in the past or have heard about so much that you can't wait to read.
Let me start with my list of books that I have yet to read.
1. East if Eden-Johns Steinbeck
2. The Secret Lives of Bees- forgot the author's name
3. Living History-Hillary Clinton
4. This Side of Paradise-F Scott Fitzgerald
5. The Color Purple-Alice Walker
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| knt |
Posted
on 20-Jun-03 04:18 PM
I am an illiterate because I don't read books often--only once in a blue moon when I'm in the mood...lately I have become a voracious reader, I guess, partly because I graduated from college and haven't yet landed a job, hehe.
One book that really grasped my attention was Frank Herbert's Dune...have yet to read the sequels..but the first one was very very good. Also, Garcia's one hundred years of solitude is highly recommended by me.
And currently I am reading Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code
And yet have to read Sebold's book...it's called Lovely bones..or something like that.
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| by |
Posted
on 20-Jun-03 04:25 PM
Dilasha,
How about Harry Potter? C'mon now.
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| ruck |
Posted
on 20-Jun-03 05:21 PM
Veronika Decides to Die - Paulo Coelho
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| Bhunte |
Posted
on 20-Jun-03 06:18 PM
ruck, dying is a decision? probaly it may suicide plan.
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| porcelina |
Posted
on 20-Jun-03 06:46 PM
the long hours i have to devote to studying histology dont really permit me to read as much as i would like to, but i still manage to fit in a book or 2 a week. i've just recently finished reading 'The Alchemist' (Paul Coelho), Portrait in Sepia (Isabella Allende, who also wrote House of Spirits), The Satanic Verses (Salman Rushdie) and right now i'm reading 'A Star Named Henry' by an Irish Author whose name i forget.
Theres Niccolas Machiavelli's 'The Prince' waiting for me, and I'm just dying to get my hand on the new Harry Potter...
Another book i'm waiting to read is 'The life of Pi'.
As much reading i might do in the adult section, i have a real soft spot for childrens books too... i just love the innocence they portray. Of course, me being Ms. Analysis 2003, interpret them in my own philosophical ways.
I've been absolutely in love with Roald Dahl's books most of my early teenage years, and.. *i just cant let go of my enid blyton books (but i was never a fan of noddy*
Dilasha, i would recommend reading The Color Purple too, I really loved the characters Alice Walker created. The movie is brilliant too, but i would recommend you to avoid it like the plague until you finish reading the book.
Oh by the way, talking of Harry Potter, did you hear that JK Rowland has killed off one of the main characters?? Do you have any idea whom??
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| isolated freak |
Posted
on 20-Jun-03 07:49 PM
Porcelina,
The Prince is a must read. BTW, which edition/version are you planning on reading? Get the Cambridge Version, its better than the Penguin and the Rest, in terms of analysis.
Now, what's on my shelf:
1. Imagined Communities- Benedict Anderson
2. Korea: Division, Reunion and US Foreign Policy- Martin Hart Landsberg
3. From Beirut to Jerusaem- Thomas Friedman
4. The Tragedy of Great Power Politcis- John Mersheimer
5. Imperialism without Colonies- Harry Magdoff
Unfortunately, God gave me neither ability nor patience to raed fiction :-)
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| KalAnkIsThaN |
Posted
on 20-Jun-03 09:11 PM
Dilasha jyu ko thread for readers?
Aaafu le ta Course-book padhe hunthyo, tyo ta parai jaawosh, aru ke padhai bho!!
Last book I read, Cuckoo's Egg -- tyo pani karr le padhya!!
Shelf nai chaina, book ta parai jaawosh!!
eh!!
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| Arnico |
Posted
on 20-Jun-03 10:31 PM
Okay, here is a list of books that are currently sitting on my desk(s), being read, or waiting to be read:
A New Kind of Science - Stephen Wolfram
RedHat Linux 8 Unleashed - Ball, Duff (I've got to learn Linux!!!)
Introduction to Geophysical Fluid Dynamics -- Cushman-Roisin (for re-reading 3rd time)
Atmospheric Processes in Complex Terrain -- American Meteorological Soc. monograph
Air Quality in the Mexico Megacity - Molina et al.
Future Cities: Dynamics and Sustainability - Moavenzadeh et al.
World Development Report 2003: Sust. Dev. in a Dynamic World -- World Bank
The Nature of Unverdevelopment and Regional Structure in Nepal-- Baburam Bhattarai
The New Lahures: Foreign Employment and Remittance Economy of Nepal -- Seddon
Sikshya: Bikash ra Chunauti - Dr. Suresh Raj Sharma
Basanti - Diamond samsher
Pagal Basti - Sarubhakta
I don't want to talk about it: Overcoming the Secret Legacy of Male Depression - Real
The Good Marriage - Judith Wallerstein (a study of marriages that have lated)
Travel Photography - Richard L'Anson
... and of course, waiting impatiently for Harry Potter Volume 5 to hit the market, as well as waiting to get my hands on Hillary Clinton's memoires.
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| Master_Of_One_Liners |
Posted
on 21-Jun-03 12:47 AM
"Mistaken Identity - The Story of Lose and Loose" - Gram Mar
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| Neural |
Posted
on 21-Jun-03 01:05 AM
For those related to Power System / Deregulaton, this wud be an interesting.
"Power System Economics: Designing Markets for Electricity"
by Steven Stoft (Author)
Bring ur leisure time (if u can have) for this & see.......
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| porcelina |
Posted
on 21-Jun-03 01:44 AM
>>The Prince is a must read. BTW, which edition/version are you planning on reading? Get the Cambridge Version, its better than the Penguin and the Rest, in terms of analysis.>>
hi isolated_freak... you're a tad bit too late... i live in the goddamn end of the earth at the moment, and the only version i found was the Penguin Classics.
As for the Irish book i was reading, its written by Roddy Doyle, and i'm not really that fond of the style, but i definitely love the content... not giving away anything potential readers...
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| ashu |
Posted
on 21-Jun-03 04:14 AM
Dilasha,
Excellent topic.
I try to average a book a week, mostly history, biographies, evolutionary biology, economics and other liberal-artsy sort of topics. But, hey, some weeks are busier
than others.
These are the books I enjoyed reading in the last few months (and a copy each is
sitting on my shelf as I type this up. Most of these are available at Educational Book House on Kantipath near Jamal.
1. Genome: The autobio of a species in 23 chapters by Matt Ridley
2. A writer's nightmare (selected essays 1958-1988) by R.K. Narayan.
3. Blood against the snows: The tragic history of Nepal's royal dynasty by Jonathan Gregson [I will most likely submit a review of this to a publication soon.]
4. Mao Zedong by Jonathan Spence [Thanks to Isolated Freak for lending this.]
5. Imagine there's no country: Poverty, inequality and growth in the era of globalization
by Surjit Bhalla.
6. Complications: notes from the life of a young surgeon by Atul Gawande
7. Passport Photos by Amitava Kumar.
8.Woman: An Intimate Geography by Natiler Angier.
9. Forged in war: Churcill, Roosevelt and the Second World War by Warren Kimball.
10.Indira: The life of Indira Nehru Gandhi by Katherine Frank
11. A cook's tour: in search of the perfect meal by Anthony Bourdain
12. Tony Blair: Prime Minister by John Rentoul
13. Who says elephants can't dance: Inside IBM's historic turnaround by Lou Gerstner
[I reviewed this book for New Business Age -- June 2003 issue. Here's the link
http://www.nepalnews.com.np/contents/englishmonthly/businessage/2003/jun/book.htm
and the book I am reading this week-end:
Eldest son: Zou Enlai and the making of modern China 1898-1976. [Thanks to Iso Freak for lending this to me.]
***********
Arnico,
Could I brorrow "A New Kind of Science - Stephen Wolfram"?
*************
Neural, This sounds very interesting. I'll see whether our bijuli pundits (Dipak Gywali et al have this book; and if so, will try to borrow this.)
""Power System Economics: Designing Markets for Electricity"
by Steven Stoft (Author)
oohi
ashu
ktm,nepal
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| VillageVoice |
Posted
on 21-Jun-03 07:40 AM
Excellent thread. Some of you are amazingly voracious readers. As for me, I hope to read these through the summer.
1. Understanding the Maoist Movement of Nepal (Martin Chautari), Edited by Deepak Thapa
2. NGO Rights and Responsibilities: A New Deal for Global Governance, by Michael Edwards
3. Thomas Jefferson, by Joyce Appleby
4. Abraham, by Bruce Feiler
5. At Home in the World. 50 of Daniel Pearl's best stories. (Pearl of course was the Wall Street reporter who was brutally murdered by Islamic extremists in Pakistan in Feb, 2002)
6. The Rise of Illiberal Democracy, by Fareed Zakaria
7. Living History, Hillary Clinton
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| NK |
Posted
on 21-Jun-03 07:54 AM
Hey there Vivijee, kaha bepatta?? Coming or not coming??
I am gonna print this whole thread out and keep it. Then, when I finish what I need to finish I will go and find this list. I will cross out some and read some. Thank you Dilasha for starting this thread.
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| isolated freak |
Posted
on 21-Jun-03 09:45 AM
Porcelina,
hmm, if you are in Nepal, I can lend you The Prince, edited by Quentin Skinner and Russle Price, because its the BEST translation and analysis of Niccolo Machiavelli's work.
Let me thank Arnico for kindly bringing me the book by Anderson.
Ashu, no problem. How are you finding the books? I liked both of them. Han Suyin's description of Zhou's life and Spence's brilliant analysis of Mao's political career..
namaste..
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| porcelina |
Posted
on 21-Jun-03 09:54 AM
Isolated_Freak, thank you so much for the offer, but unfortunately i do not live in Nepal presently, but if you want to you could come to Prague, and dont forget the book. ;)
.
.
.Porcelina
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| knt |
Posted
on 21-Jun-03 10:01 AM
I have read Thomas Friedman's From Beirut to Jerusalem. It was a pretty good book. I also read Stiglitz's book, Globalization and its discontents, although I cannot claim that I understood everything given the fact that I am not an economist. But supposedly he wrote it in such a way that everybody, even those who are not familiar with economics, are supposed to understand the gist of what he's trying to tell us. Has anybody read Galileo's daughter? It's an eye-opener and the book does delve into how women were treated back in those days in Europe.
And yes, I have also read many of Naipaul's books: Enigma of Arrival, A House for Mr Biswas, Half a Life, A Bend in the River, Mystic Masseur, etc. I found that his fictions were more absorbing than non-fictions.
I guess everybody in here has read Samrat Upadhyay's books, the one that came out lately, Guru of Love, and Arresting God in Kathmandu. I found that I was able to identify with the characters very much and his descriptions were also quite vivid, and the book was engrossing in general, although my only complaint is that some of the characters weren't that developed.
Also, has anybody read Asimov's Foundation series? Any good? I have lately become a big sci-fi fanatic, partly because my ex-roommate was one. If there are any other sci-fi books that people have read and enjoyed immensely, please recommend them to me.
I did read The Prince when I was in college, but I don't remember squat. I hear Sun Tzu's book(did I spell that right) is excellent as well, and even in today's society where warfare is technology-based, many things that he talks about are still applicable.
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| isolated freak |
Posted
on 21-Jun-03 10:04 AM
Prague? heard its a beautiful city..i'll be bringing the book, if i land in prague someday..
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| isolated freak |
Posted
on 21-Jun-03 10:10 AM
KNT,
I am reading Friedman's book and I just finished the chapters on beirut.. Now, I am moving onto Syria.. a vivid description of a chaotic world..
The book you are talking about is: Sun Tzu Bing Fa (The Art oF War). Its a book on strategy. So, if you are into strategic studies, whether business or miitary, this is a must read. It was written somewhere around 2200 years ago at the time of the First Chinese Emperor, Qin Shi Huang Di. It basically deals on building strategies, protecting terretorial integrity, army mobilization and espionage.
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| knt |
Posted
on 21-Jun-03 10:17 AM
Thanks Isolated Freak. I want to read Sun Tzu's book for a completely different reason. I am a big fan of strategy games(age of kings, warcraft, age of mythology) and I see people quoting from his book and actually using the strategies mentioned for their strategic campaigns, etc.
And about Thomas Friedman's book, are you reading the new version that came out about six months ago? I remember it had shot up right to the no. 1 spot back then. The book I read was the one that came out in the 1990's.
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| isolated freak |
Posted
on 21-Jun-03 10:19 AM
KNT,
This might hep you remember The Prince:
The Prince is about statecraft. Its Niccolo Machiavelli's letter to Medici. The book mainly talks about how a ruler/prince ought to behave. He goes against his predecessors, Cicero and others.. and interestingly enbough, there are simiarities between his work and Chanakya's arthashastra.. Anyways, Machiavelli is more into
1) preserving terretorial integrity
2)acquaring prinicpalities
3) How hateed and contempt should be avoided or dealt with
4) military mobilization
Machiavelli is too realist. He doesn't dwell on ideals.. forget idealism, do whatever neds to be done to preseve your rule is the main message of the book.
namaste
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| isolated freak |
Posted
on 21-Jun-03 10:21 AM
KNT,
I am reading the old version of Friedman.. 1998 edition.
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| suva chintak |
Posted
on 21-Jun-03 03:16 PM
On my shelf:
State of Nepal, edited by Kanak Dixit and R. Shastri. Lalitpur: Himal Books.
I just got hold of this interesting volume. Sixteen Nepali intellectuals and academics do surgery on various contemporary issues from politics to poetry, economy to monarchy. Supposed to be the highest selling English book in Nepal after Dor Bahadur Bista's 'Fatalism and Development' a decade ago. Anyone seen a review of this book yet?
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| SITARA |
Posted
on 21-Jun-03 03:49 PM
On My shelf:
The Moral Men- Robert Wright
The Ascent of The Mind- William Calvin
Goodbye to All That-- Robert Graves
Dangerous Wives and Sacred Sisters-- Lynn Bennett
The Tree of Yoga-- Iyengar
The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying-- Sogyal Rimpoche
Education as Cultural Imperialism-- Martin Carnoy
The Clash of Civilization-- Samual P. Huntington
And many more non-fictions...I buy more books than I can read.
My reading is all over the place...!!! :( I hope to get to these books.
Dilasha, nice thread... Something to think about for a change.
Suva Chintak ji:
I did read the review of "State of Nepal"; infact, I am interested in what these people have to say... some give a social scientific perspective, I gathered. Would you give a synopsis if/and when you have the time? Thank you.
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| isolated freak |
Posted
on 21-Jun-03 09:16 PM
Interesting,
everyone's reading, and reading is always good. the more you read, the more you can think.. suneko kuro thaha chaina.
I have read The Clash of Civilizations and Dangerous Wives and Sacred Sisters. I read those when I was in college. My sophomore year.
Samuel Huntington's books stirred quite a controversy when it first came out. His thesis that there will be religious movements to deal with the identity issue, and that there will be unholy alliances between the powers to play each against the other, is kind of well.. far stretched..but, its a good book.. challenges you to think.
Dangerous Wives is Nepali Culture 101. Lynn's book has more of her own analysis, unlike Parish who tried to make sense of Nepali/Newari culture through opinions of his subjects.
Let me reccomend two books:
1. Moral Knowing in a Hindu Sacred City: Stephan Parish
2. Digital Diploma Mills: David Noble
[For those of you who are concerned about the commodification of education and those of you who don't like the idea of online-education].
Also,
Has anyone here read the biography of Herohito that came out 2-3 years ago? How is it?
Hopefully, I'll be getting my copy of Illeberal Democracies this week, i.e, if the mail office doesn't screw up.
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| isolated freak |
Posted
on 21-Jun-03 09:18 PM
to play each against the other- play one against the other
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| ashu |
Posted
on 21-Jun-03 10:48 PM
Sitara wrote:
"On My shelf:
The Moral Men- Robert Wright"
Sitara,
"The Moral Men - Robert Wright" ??
PERHAPS the book is titled "The Moral Animal: Evolutionary Psychology and Everyday Life" by Robert Wright :-)
Incidentally, it's a great, readable book, I recommend it to all Sajha friends, especially those of you with an interest in evolution, genetics and stuff like that.
The book quite popular among, of all people, economists because the underlying logic
of evolutionary psychology is pretty similiar to microeconomics: Why do individuals (and firms) make the decisions that they make, whether it be choosing a spouse or being altruistic toward others.
Wright, a journalist at The New Republic, remains a fierce critic of late geologist Stephen Jay Gould, and once accused -- in the pages of The New Yorker -- Gould for being a poster-boy for creatonists and doing damage to the field of evolution.
oohi
ashu
ktm,nepal
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| Master_Of_One_Liners |
Posted
on 21-Jun-03 10:55 PM
For those who need a lesson on globalization - Thomas Friedman's The Lexus and The Olive Tree.
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| Master_Of_One_Liners |
Posted
on 21-Jun-03 10:57 PM
Once more, also read "Mistaken Identity - The Story of Lose and Loose" by Gram Mar.
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| SITARA |
Posted
on 22-Jun-03 05:40 AM
Ashu:
IT IS THE MORAL ANIMAL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Why We Are The Way We Are: The News Science OF Evolutionary Psychology.
Thanks Ashu! :)
I must have been typing in my sleep! I start 3- 4 books at the same time and rotate when I start getting gutted with one subject....It is an extremely bad habit of mine. :(
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| knt |
Posted
on 22-Jun-03 05:59 AM
Hmm, looks like my mind is a vacuum when it comes to sociology or anthropology or religion. I guess my interest lies more in sci-fi fictions and, if I read non-fictions, American politics, or if not American politics, international politics, like say, what's happening in Israel, or what's happening in Iraq. I have no idea what's going on in Nepal, don't even know the tumultous ways of politics over there. I guess I need to start reading more, and I should start from Nepal News most probably. I also don't know much about Hinduism aside from the course I took when I was college, and even that I don't remember much, since I don't have photographic memory. So, perhaps I should start reading more about Nepali politics and anthropological books that came out lately regarding rites, rituals, cultural practices among our people. Can anybody recommend some good books for me, aside from the ones that have already been recommended.
Thanks in advance.
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| Dilasha |
Posted
on 23-Jun-03 03:14 PM
Thanks to all of you for your recommendations. Like NK I too am printing a copy of this thread. Somebody mentioned Basanti written by Diamond Shumshere. I have never read the novel but I watched the movie yesterday and to my surprise it was all about the real life characters Jung Bahadur, Gagan Singh, Fateh Man Singh, et all. Now is this a fiction based on the times of Jung bahadur's rise to power thus making characters like Basanti, Damar Bahadur, Misri amaa and the incidents just figments of the writer's imagination- kinda like the movie Titanic? Or did the characters exist in real life? Anyone knows? I'm just curious.
Ashu, let me know how Blood against the Snows is. I tried in Amazon but to no avail. And I'm anxiously waiting for the biography Ranas of Nepal that my friend is bringing next week. Although the price was exorbitant, I couldn't resist to own it hence mutu mathi dhunga raakhi, i had to pay a 100 american dollars for the 400 page biography. I know i'm crazy but sometimes i just can't help it. :) What about A cook's tour Ashu? What kind of "perfect" meals does the writer talk about?
And Village Voice ji, what did you think about Living History? Were you in line to get Hillary's autograph in nyc? If I were there, I think I'd have gone to Barnes and Noble cuz I simply admire the lady. :)
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| Logical Sense |
Posted
on 23-Jun-03 03:39 PM
Wow, where do you get time to read all these good books?
BTW: Public radio in Norther California publishes a summer reading list every year:
http://www.kqed.org/kqedstore/forum.jsp
I was pleasantly surprised to notice "Guru of Love" among 88 of top notch books.
Happy reading Saathi Haru
-iti
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| observer |
Posted
on 23-Jun-03 04:43 PM
Just a quick question to Neural :
Are you in the Power Systems field? Couldn't help asking you this after I noticed your recommendation. If you are, I'll be glad to know a sajhaite in the same field as I am. But then again, you could also be a journalist or a free-lancer..
As for me, I don't have the patience to read a book that's more than 20-30 pages, but I have, in my course work, read the following books and have enjoyed them.
Rene Descartes, Meditations on First Philosophy [ loved it!]
Volatire, Candide [ not all that great..]
Marx and Engels, The Communist Manifesto [ still wondering how so intricately put ideas didn't work !]
Sigmund Freud, Civilization and Its Discontents [ sex and aggression : hmmm..]
Leo Tolstoy, Confession [ need I say anything ? ]
Franz Kafka, The Complete Stories [ nice and short stories]
Arundhati Roy, The God of Small Things [ Frankly, I quit putting extra effort to understand her literature after a few pages! ]
Plato, Five Dialogues [ The best one among the five : Apology ]
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| czar |
Posted
on 23-Jun-03 05:08 PM
To KNT, and those interested in Sci-Fi
Asimov's Foundation Series is almost de rigeur reading for those interested in this genre. Each one is a good read in itself, and taken as a series, takes some digesting. Any book by this phenomenal intellect and storyteller is worth reading.
Frank Herberts 'Dune' series are excellent. The TV mini-series 'Dune', the second make of it preferrably, is worth watching. Just a few months ago, 'Children of Dune' (book two) aired to much acclaim.
Larry Niven - the man stretches minds with the mind boggling scale of his creations. To give you a hint: terrafirming a habitable system with the mass of Jupiter and orbital size of ole watery blue planet earth around a sun like star...aah..I don't want to give too too much away. A must read: 'Ringworld' series. The 'Man Kzin wars' and others in that series are also interesting. Some of which were written in collaboration with Jerry Pournelle, a columnist and tech reviewer for PC Magazine.
Anne Mccafrey - Dragons of Pern and others in the series. Excellent story telling.
Arthur C. Clarke - Garden of Rama and many others, widely acclaimed as the best sci-fi writer of the last century. An author of diverse views and interests, clearly expressed in his many books.
Robert Silverberg - creator of the Dark Tower series whic are excellent. 'Nightwings' is my all time favourite.
For anyone intested in fiction based on archaelogy/anthropology etc, Jean M. Auel presents intriguing possibilities and rivetting storytelling in the pre-historic adventures of Ayla the girl child. The first book of the series is 'Clan of the Cave Bear.' The fifth book in the saga was launched last year in hardcover, soon to hit the bookstands in paperback edition.
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| najar |
Posted
on 23-Jun-03 08:10 PM
Here are a few currently on my shelf:
1. Betrayal of Trust--The Collapse of Global Public Health by Laurie Garrett
2. The Bone Setter's Daughter--Amy Tan
3. Guns, Germs and Steel--Jared Diamond (can't seem to finish this despite its enriching content--started it a while ago, but seem to pick others when comes down to reading)
4. The Pick Up (fiction)--Nadine Gordimer
5. Charms for the easy life--Kaye Gibbons
6. Atma Britanta, BP Koirala-- tranlasted by Kanak Mani Dixit
Waiting for the State of Nepal, edited by Kanak Mani to borrow from some friends---
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| KaLaNkIsThAn |
Posted
on 23-Jun-03 08:23 PM
Aaaaaaanch Czar and Najar jyu,
Okay Out of 637 hits, almost 200 were made by me hai!!
Everytime I think someone writes about any book that I have read, ani haat laagye sunne.. ehh!!
Dilasha naani le ke garyo ke garyo, hijo basera din bhari ghar ma shelf khojya, bheti euta. Kitab pani rahecha, 3 wota.. ehh.
Coming Of Age In America re... collection of short narrations. euta jacket bhanne katha daami laagera bachaako. I'm so glad I found this book, thanks Dilasha, hazur le motivated me to find my book!! ehh
arko chai, Sapphire ko "American Dreams" and "Push".... American dreams ramro laagya jasto laagera buy one get one free ma kinya... walden stores bata. Am I the only one who read these books? ehh...
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| by |
Posted
on 23-Jun-03 09:24 PM
I have been a silent follower of this very interesting thread. I am particularly intrigued by two books that have been mentioned here, which are also on my shelf.
Najar,
How are you finding Guns, Germs and Steel so far?
Sitara,
What did you think of The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying ?
I would love to hear the feedbacks from these two wonderful ladies or from anybody who has read those two books.
Thanks.
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| SITARA |
Posted
on 24-Jun-03 03:49 PM
By, Thank you for asking.
I have not yet completed "The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying" because the content ( I find) is too heavy for me to just skim through. So far, I have enjoyed leisurely going from pargraph to paragraph trying to understand the nuances of the philosophy. Some constants that never fail to impact me:
- the permanence of impermanence
-the fear of the unknown
-our defence against "the fear of the unknown"
-Death as the only known permanence
Hence:
- the reason to practise detachment
-the reason to find a meaning in the quality of life we live
-the reason to live beyond the impermanence of life
-the reason to conquer the unknown fears
-the reason to conquer the fear of death
Conclusion:
-to live in grace, to die in dignity.
Inaddition to the above there are major parts on the Nature of the mind, the ego and the self... so on.
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| knt |
Posted
on 24-Jun-03 04:22 PM
Thanks Czar, for your advice. I have read Frank Herbert's Dune, and I must concede that as of now, this has been the best book that I have ever read. Now, I don't read much; in fact it's been only about a year that I've been reading zealously(did I use this word right?). It's not an easy book to read, I guess, so I wasn't able to breeze through it like I wanted to do...but nevertheless the book is so profound that it left me thinking even after I was done reading the book. Everything is good in the book: philosophy, how people are dependent on melange, a form of spice, Paul's growing up, etc, etc. I just loved it. Are the sequels good too? From what I hear from my colleague, the sequels aren't as good as the first book, as according to him, Herbert complicates the book by philosophizing it to an extreme. What did you think Czar?
Asimov's foundation series is definitely on my list. Thanks!
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| Parewa |
Posted
on 24-Jun-03 07:34 PM
Currently reading Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden.
It's a good one....takes you to a whole new world of a Geisha in Japan before the WWII .
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| czar |
Posted
on 24-Jun-03 07:48 PM
Knt, a pleasure to meet a Sci-Fi fan.
Herbert did indeed stand on the soap box a bit, but as the narrator of the story, perhaps he felt it as a necessary ingredient to establish the near mystical aspect of the Mahdi's powers. Perhaps he took a sniff of the spice, who knows ? !!
If philosophical entreaties appeal to you, the Foundation series has one which deals with the concept of Gaia and that may provide you with food for thought.
I clean forgot the author/title of one intresting concept: what if the future can indeed be extrapolated from the range of possibilities that each of us face and trends of choices made? What if the math existed to do it, even taking into account the often randomness that guide choices? Chew on that one!
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| najar |
Posted
on 24-Jun-03 07:58 PM
By ji,
Good to see you break your silence barrier. Welcome!
As I said above, i am yet to finish the book although I started a while ago.
I am reluctant to provide my analysis in detail before completing the book. But a few points that comes in mind based on my partial read that have made a mark.
First of all, it was interesting to read that the whole idea for the book evolving from a simple question that his friend in New Guinea asked. I also read somewhere this could just be an excuse, and he already had the idea in mind. At times toward the beginning chapters i also sense his bias toward New Guinea as he has spent a number of years there.
Neverthelesss, a comprehensive historical account of human history starting from Ice age on every continent with a thorough background. Also am fascinated by the fundamental factors he so brilliantly presents, that have led the Europeans to the stage they are now--the factors being geographical and ecological, as he puts himself, a sheer luck in distribution of climate, crops and domestic animals, and subsequently to germs, guns and thus early start in devlelopment.
Informative, remarkable and highly scientific! More upon completing the book. If you happen to finish it sooner, let us know your thoughts on it also byji.
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| Master_Of_One_Liners |
Posted
on 25-Jun-03 12:04 AM
-Death as the only known permanence
It used to be that death and taxes were inevitable - now there's shipping & handling.
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| porcelina |
Posted
on 25-Jun-03 09:07 AM
talking of sci-fi, i just finished reading 'the hitch-hikers guide to the galaxy' series, and i must say that i really enjoyed them... i wasn't really a big fan of science fiction, but as soon as i finished reading those books, i immediately picked up Arltur C clarks 2001: A space Odyssey... amazing, i must say.
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| bhenda2 |
Posted
on 25-Jun-03 09:17 AM
Does anybody like Robert A Heinlein? I really liked Stranger in a strange land.
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| Yadav |
Posted
on 25-Jun-03 09:57 AM
I am reading a *fascinating* book right now called "The Myth of Monogomy." The book is terribly depressing, actually, but attempts to give an evolutionary excuse for cheating (which the authors clinically refer to as "extra-pair copulations", or EPCs).
According to them:
Reproductively successful men are genetically pre-disposed to create as many offspring as possible, and the easiest way to do this is to sleep with any female who's willing, and the more the better. So, men cheat because they're trying to "spread their seed" by having as many EPCs as possible.
Reproductively successful women are concerned with quality above quantity -- they want to sleep with the "sexiest" male of the species so that their male offspring will be sexy and get lots of women and produce lots of grandchildren, thereby extending the initial female's genes another generation. so when women cheat, it is theoretically with men who are in some way "better" then the men they're mated to -- they're trying to move up in the world, basically.
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| VillageVoice |
Posted
on 26-Jun-03 07:56 AM
Dilasha, haven't got my copy of Living History yet. Hopefully soon, maybe from a thirft shop nextdoor. Or half.com. Ha ha.
Yes, Hillary definitely is an astonishing lady. A lot of people, especially those leaning toward the right, like to dissmiss her, but I say this woman is amazingly resilient.
The Big Question: Whether the author of Living History will make history to be the first woman to occupy the White House? I for one wouldn't be surprised. Yes, there are people who hate her but there are also those who follow her every single step.
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| czar |
Posted
on 02-Jul-03 12:42 PM
Jean M. Auel's "The Shelters of Stone" is now out in paperback edition.
For those not familiar with the story, a brief synopis:
It is the time before time, when snow and ice covered the land most days of the year. Summers were short, winters long and harsh. In the darkness roamed the sabre toothed preadators and others that meted out sudden and cruel deaths.
On this land walked two species of humans, one of which used telepathy. It is a long harsh cold winter that lasts ten thousand years and many will perish before the dawn of the new age. Into this landscape is born the girl child Ayla..cared for by the 'others,' she grow up to reach heights of adventure and achievements never before seen on this new world.
Compelling storytelling by a skilled writer. The books are a work of fiction but they are backed by years of of painsticking research and study. For those interested, the first book is Clan of the Cave Bear.
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| knt |
Posted
on 03-Jul-03 09:43 AM
Thanks Czar. Might check up on that book. I will of course read Foundation..it's a must-read for all sci-fi fans.
I just read Dan Brown's Da Vinci code. The plot: A prominent art historian, Sauniere, before dying of bullet wounds he suffers at the hands of an Opus Dei member, when working in the Louvre, concocts a clever cryptologic code he uses to send hidden messages to his grand-daughter and another art-historian, Langdon. However, his hidden message also makes Robert Langdon the chief suspect in Sauniere's murder, because of which they have no choice but to decamp. This, on the surface. The novel is actually a quest for the coveted holy grail, or as the French call it, Sangreal. At least that's the essential part of it. And I did learn a lot about the Holy grail, and how the Vatican schemes to not let info about it leak out. I also never knew that Jesus Christ was married and his descendants still survive in France, even to this day!! They don't come out openly though for fear of being killed by fanatics.
Having said that, I just wish that the author had developed the characters more fully. It's educational, no doubt about it, and engrossing, but I didn't feel anything for the characters.
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| le chef du nuit |
Posted
on 03-Jul-03 11:33 PM
im looking for help here
i once read a book i remember vividly, except for the title and the author :)
story goes like this:
orphaned, disfigured portugese kid adopted by englishman, brought up in england, extremely bright, ends up a chef
if anyone whose read this book and remembers the title or the author, could you post it here?
i just wanted to read it again
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| isolated freak |
Posted
on 04-Jul-03 08:58 PM
Addendum to my list of summer books:
The Coming Anarchy: Shattering the Dreams of the POst Cold War- Robert Kaplan
The End of the American Era: US Foreign Policy and the Geopolitics of the Twenty-First Century- Charles Kupchan
Thanks to Kalankisthan for kindly sending me the books.
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| Junu |
Posted
on 04-Jul-03 09:19 PM
I am reading Living history Hillary Rodham Clinton. I will be done by next Monday. If any one wants to borrow, Please let me know.
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| isolated freak |
Posted
on 04-Jul-03 09:37 PM
Junu kata ho?
nepal ma ho?
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