What Are You Reading Now?

[Surfah]

I finished the Lombardi biography. It was very good, if you are interested in Pro Football, the Green Bay Packers or leadership in general, I fall in all three catagories - I would highly recommend this.

Some interesting facts

if West Point had given him and extra $1000 in 1953, he would have stayed at West Point and 'Nappers alma mater might have been important on the college football stage for a few more years

Like a lot of driven men, his relationship with his children was strained at best

The famous story of him sitting down to negoiate a contract with Jim Ringo, Ringo showing up the an agent, Lomardi excusing himself for a minute and trading him to the Eagles, and then coming back into the room and telling Ringo and his agent they need to to talk to Eagles Ringo has been traded is not true. The deal had been in the works for some time and Lombardi didn't actually make the arrangement.

Currently reading the Jack London biography

That's disappointing.

[il Padrino Ute]

I'm reading Treasure Island. What a great story. I really like Stevenson's work.

[MarkGrace]

Finished In Cold Blood by Capote.

Now reading The Rest Is Noise by Alex Ross again.

[USUC]

I'm really late to the game on this one, but I'm halfway through McCarthy's The Road.

[Green Lantern]

Just finished The Big Over Easy by Jasper Fforde. It's a murder mystery set in an England where nursery rhyme characters are real, so they are investigating the suspicious death of Humpty Dumpty. It sounds stupid but it's actually hilarious and endlessly clever, full of great wordplay and ideas. I recommend it to fans of Monty Python and Douglas Adams.

[happyone]

Finished the Jack London biography. That man led a very interesting life! Started working in a pickle factory at 10, became a poacher, one of the more renowned oyster pirates in the Bay Area at 15, game warden protecting the oyster beds, dropping out of high school, going on a sealer to Japan and the Arctic by 17, returning to high school to fininish, but dropping out again, applying and be accepted to UC Berkly, dropping out after one semester, going to the Klondike - He did more in the first 20 yrs of his life than 10 - 15 other people will do in their lives combined

Interesting facts

- his first mentor was Joseph Smith's Niece Ina Coolbrith, the Oakland City Librarian
- he was a commited Socialist
- he sold the rights to Call Of The Wild to his publisher for a flat fee - $2000, and never regretted it

edit: He died of an overdose of morphine - whether it was suicide or not has never been determined

Currently reading David Poyer's latest novel Ghosting

[LA Ute]

Finished the Jack London biography. That man led a very interesting life! Started working in a pickle factory at 10, became a poacher, one of the more renowned oyster pirates in the Bay Area at 15, game warden protecting the oyster beds, dropping out of high school, going on a sealer to Japan and the Arctic by 17, returning to high school to fininish, but dropping out again, applying and be accepted to UC Berkly, dropping out after one semester, going to the Klondike - He did more in the first 20 yrs of his life than 10 - 15 other people will do in their lives combined

Interesting facts

- his first mentor was Joseph Smith's Niece Ina Coolbrith, the Oakland City Librarian
- he was a commited Socialist
- he sold the rights to Call Of The Wild to his publisher for a flat fee - $2000, and never regretted it

Currently reading David Poyer's latest novel Ghosting

I once read "To Build A Fire" to my Scouts while we sat around a campfire on a cold and snowy night. At the end they sat in silence, but one one boy piped up, loudly, with "That's it? He just dies?" One of my favorite Scout leader memories.

[Mrs. Funk]

Just finished The Big Over Easy by Jasper Fforde. It's a murder mystery set in an England where nursery rhyme characters are real, so they are investigating the suspicious death of Humpty Dumpty. It sounds stupid but it's actually hilarious and endlessly clever, full of great wordplay and ideas. I recommend it to fans of Monty Python and Douglas Adams.

The Nursery Crime series is awesome! Actually, Jasper Fforde is just awesome. Given your like of the Nursery Crimes, you owe it to yourself to check out the Thursday Next series (also by J.F.). I've rhapsodized about it elsewhere on this board, but it really is hilarious and brilliant and inventive.

[Parrot Head]

Recently started [ame="http://www.amazon.com/Blind-Descent-Quest-Discover-Deepest/dp/1400067677/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1291606884&sr=1-1"]Amazon.com: Blind Descent: The Quest to Discover the Deepest Place on Earth (9781400067671): James M. Tabor: Books@@AMEPARAM@@http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51XbJi4GXyL.@@AMEPARAM@@51XbJi4GXyL[/ame] which is the story of cavers searching for the deepest caves on earth.

[Green Lantern]

The Nursery Crime series is awesome! Actually, Jasper Fforde is just awesome. Given your like of the Nursery Crimes, you owe it to yourself to check out the Thursday Next series (also by J.F.). I've rhapsodized about it elsewhere on this board, but it really is hilarious and brilliant and inventive.

I definitely will. I just discovered that my mom has The Fourth Bear at her house, so that's going on the queue and then I'd love to check out some of his other stuff. I also read that he has a third Nursery Crime novel coming out next year.

Right now I've decided that I'm tired of being a guy who only read half the Harry Potter series (Books 1-4 to be exact.) And even those had to be about 8 years ago. So yesterday I started Operation: Potter and will be reading all 7 books over the next month or two.

[happyone]

...Right now I've decided that I'm tired of being a guy who only read half the Harry Potter series (Books 1-4 to be exact.) And even those had to be about 8 years ago. So yesterday I started Operation: Potter and will be reading all 7 books over the next month or two.

I never got around to reading the final one - just got updates from the wife and daughters
My wife has started rereading the series in preparation for the final movie.

[happyone]

Finished Ghosting, I thought it was a pretty good thriller. It is about a doctor who decides it would be a good family bonding experience to sail from New England to Bermuda. No one is the family has never done any open ocean sailing and he doesn't take anyone along who has - major trouble follows.

Since my last update, I've also read Lincoln and McClellan : the troubled partnership between a president and his general by John Waugh. This book is a study of the relationship between Lincoln and the first commander of the Army of the Potomac, George B. McClellan. The author does not portray McClellan is a very good light. McClellan comes off as arrogant and if things don't go his way petulant, bad results are never his fault.

Some interesting facts

McClellan and Lincoln knew each other professionally before the war. McClellan ran the Central Illinois RR and the Railroad was one of Lincoln's clients.

McClellan literally married the bosses daughter - while he was trying to convince his wife to marry him, her father was his commanding officer.

His rival for his wife, Nellie's hand was A.P. Hill, who later became a Confederate General. Capt Hill was Nelly's first choice. His future MIL was not in favor of that match - she finally resorted to telling her daughter that then Capt Hill had contracted gonorrhea from indiscretions at West Point. That ended the relationship between Capt Hill and Nellie.

McClellan was under fire from almost the time he assumed command of the Army of the Potomac from people in Congress and the War Department. Lincoln protected him as much as possible from the politics.

Good quick read if you are interested in the Civil War.

currently reading the new biography of George Washington, Washington : a life by Ron Chernow

[Green Lantern]

I never got around to reading the final one - just got updates from the wife and daughters
My wife has started rereading the series in preparation for the final movie.

I forgot how much fun they are. I'm only a week in and I'll probably finish book 3 today. I downloaded all the audiobooks as well so Stephen Fry helps me during my commute.

[wuapinmon]

Just polished off Zeitoun by Dave Eggers. It's a non-fiction account of a locally well-known Syrian-American painter in New Orleans who was wrongfully arrested in his own house, held without charge for a month, denied contact with an attorney or his kin, and had almost all of his civil rights violated. He had stayed behind to help rescue people.

This guy lived less than three blocks from me.

[LiveCoug]

Reading a lame book called Tyranosaur Canyon. I've been working on this sucker for months, but just can't read more than 10 pages at a time. I will finish!!!

My wife got me 127 hours for Christmas... Excited to get going on that one...