Books I have read since January

[freethought]

I had made a New Years resolution to read more and to watch less TV.
I know this is the 'Non-Fiction' Forum but the list of books read so far are a mix.

Since the resolution started I have read the following:

"Fast Food Nation" by Eric Schlosser: I will never eat at McDonalds again. And since I fnished it, I haven't.

"The DaVinci Code" by Dan Brown: Good mystery story.
"Angels and Demons" by Dan Brown: Started out just fine but toward the end the story became a little ridiculous.
"Digital Fortress" by Dan Brown: Interesting. Finished it up in a day or so.

"The Catcher in the Rye" by J.D. Salinger: I always wondered what the controversy was about, so I bought a copy and read it. In my opinion it was a big nothing. Rather boring actually. I suppose if I had read it back in the late 40s or early 50s when the book came out I may have been shocked.

"Into the Wild" by Jon Krakauer: A great book. Sad to see a young man of such potential die like that.

"Altered Carbon" by Richard K. Morgan: Another good sci-fi/detective story. Takes a while to figure our what is going on. Violent in some parts.

"How to Make Money in Stocks" by O'Neil: I read this book to give me a better idea on how to evaluate potential stock purchases. Informative. Same guy started the "Investor's Business Daily", editorial board are bunch of conservative, free-market nut cases.

Currently Working on- "Under the Banner of Heaven" by Jon Krakauer: About 1/2 way through. Better hope religious fundamentalists like these don't make it into congress!
On deck:"Liar's Poker" by Michael Lewis, "Conspiracy of Fools" by Kurt Eichenwald, "Isaac's Storm" by Erik Larson, "The Republican Noise Machine" by David Brock.

Others I have read but it has been a while
"The Company" by Robert Littel(I think that's the author's name)
Several of Robert Ludlum's books.
"The Perfect Storm" by Sebastian Junger(Hard to forget that name)
A bunch of books by sci-fi/fantasy author David Eddings
"Eye of the Needle" can't remember the author. Book came out a long time ago.
"Lying Liars...." by Al Franken
"The Incredible Journey" by Sheila Burnford (a childhood favorite)
"The Only Sedition is Silence-Four Years in America" by William Rivers Pitt (Of course!)
A number of books on welding, electrical wiring, mechanic, machining, and custom auto painting. (I was watching too much "American Choppers" on Discovery channel, but I'm better now.)
"The Yearling" -read it a long time ago. School required it.

Just thought I would share that with fellow DUers

[The Crazy Canadian]

1. The books I've read since January

My goal this year is to read a book for each month of the year. The ones I've read so far include:

The Rebel Sell - talks about how the counterculture actually strengthens capitalism and consumerism

Authentic Happiness - talks about how one can live the "good life", heres the website: http://authentichappiness.org/

Future Tense: The Coming World Order - talks about the global battle between neocons and jihadists

The book i'm currently reading is America Alone: The Neo-Conservatives and the Global Order, written by two center-right authors. About 2/3 done.

My next book i'll be reading is Confessions of an Economic Hitman.

[freethought]

2. Been hearing alot about "Economic Hitman"

Seems like it could be good read. I noticed there is alot of political/policy/geopolitical stuff on your list. I'll give you credit.
If I read too much of that stuff I get depressed and I won't read anything. So I throw in some fiction to balance things out.

[robinlynne]

17. I jsut read it. really enjoyed it. couldn't put it down. simple reading.

[Boojatta]

4. Can someone who knows a lot about Senator John Kerry comment on this?

Future Tense: The Coming World Order - talks about the global battle between neocons and jihadists

Page 133 includes these words:

There was certainly a shift in the American public mood towards impatience with international institutions and a growing obsession with America's military power as the 1990s neared their end. That mood was reflected in Clinton's last defence budgets, which started going back up after 1998, as well as in his inability to get such innocuous multilateral agreements as the land-mines treaty and the International Criminal Court accepted by the Congress and his own military. But the Democrats showed no interest in a resurrected Pax Americana while Clinton was in office.

The fact that a lot of them voted in 2002 for Bush's invasion of Iraq
only proves that they were either gullible (and believed the cooked intelligence that they were served) or extremely cynical (and believed that they were giving Bush enough rope to hang himself). In the case of Senate Majority leader Tom Daschle and Senator John Kerry it was unquestionably the latter: they consistently and successfully argued that to attack Bush on the "war on terror," civil liberties, or the invasion of Iraq would be to walk into the trap set by Karl Rove, the president's political strategist. If Bush's war prospered, he would win the next election anyway; if it did not, at least the Republicans would not be able to blame the failure on the Democrats.

Note: the book is printed in black ink. I changed the color of some words to red for emphasis.

[karynnj]

6. Boojatta had the wisdom to ask this in the Kerry group

here are some of the answers:

1)It's a 'are you still beating your wife' thing
It pre-supposes the argument. The facts are contained in the speech that Kerry gave before his vote. That is how he felt. There was, in the Clinton years, various resolutions that passed the Congress that called for regime change in Iraq because Saddam Hussein was an international pariah and a perpetrator of genocide. Americans did think there was the possibility that he had WMDs. He had had them before and had blind-sided America during Gulf War I when it was discovered that Iraq was further along in it's development of deadly weapons and nukes than America thought.

Clinton did bomb Iraq during his tenure as President. It was the official policy of the US to contain Saddam, not because we didn't like his cookie recipes, but because he was a very dangerous player in the Middle East. There was an argument on that side. Kerry had voted for those earlier resolutions in the Senate that condemned Saddam and that backed up Clinton.

It is a serious stretch to say that he voted the way he did because of Karl Rove. The vote itself on the IWR was a Rove creation that was designed to separate Democrats from their base. I think there is truth in that. But that did not dictate all actions. Go read the floor speech. Kerry clearly spells out why he voted the way he did in that.

2)On its face I don't remember Kerry ever saying that
This site is full of statements by Kerry about Iraq, including his Senate floor speech voting for the IWR:

http://www-personal.umich.edu/~kvh/kerryoniraqwar /

It was more to counteract the flip flop charges, but it contains a lot of his words.


3)Considering he did attack Bush on the war
and on terrorism, I'd say the writer is an idiot who hasn't read a thing Senator Kerry said.

4)he does spell out why he voted as he did.

Kerry was one of the strongest voices in the summer and early fall arguing that Bush should go to Congress and to the UN. At that point, Bush was claiming that he could attack because of the resolution given that led to attacking Afghanistan. He moved a huge number of troops to the Persian Gulf.

Reading Kerry's IWR floor statement, one thing I notice is where he listed all the changes they got Bush to make in the resolution from the original language. These changes resticted it to Iraq and took out as reasons many subsequently used. From Kerry's post 2004 comments, he took these negotiations seriously. He said that if Bush went back on his word, he would be the first to protest - and he was one of the few who did before Bush invaded and after the invasion (approved by nearly 70% of the people).

Speaking out when he did counters the cynical political motive. How do you get political points for the war when you are LOUDLY on record and called anti-war (which he was labelled in early 2003)? Rather than cynical, the opposite was more likely true - Kerry was more willing to trust that a President would not lie on a matter as serious as war and peace. Kerry himself is said to be true to his word. He wasn't naive - the fact that he added the comment about speaking out implies he realized Bush could lie, but gave him the benefit of the doubt. He likely thought this was the best chance at derailing the march to war.

The importamnce of the promises - that he would exhaust the diplomacy and that it would be a last resort go to deeply held beliefs. In the Pepperdine College speech Kerry explains his understanding of St Augustine's concept of a just war - the first thing Kerry said is that war pretty much has to be a last resort to be just. That is why he refers to it as immoral.

Putting the Pepperdine College speech together with the IWR speech and memories of phrases of 2004 and Kerry's history, it is very unlikey that his vote was made for political reasons. The closest thing I have heard - not from Kerry - but from others was that this vote - either way - was a Rove trap. (There was a comment - I think from a Kerry friend or staffer, that this was a case of choosing between a Yes, but or a No, but vote.
5) My Dad takes it a step further, and says all the Democrats
are wimps and didn't stand up to Bush. Thing is, politicasista, it pays to throw some arguments out there. Like the fact that the IWR has a signing statement attached to it that says Bush doesn't even NEED authorization from Congress. That he would have gone in with or without the IWR. That he lost the second U.N. vote (he knew he didn't have the votes, so just didn't ask for one), yet he went to war anyway. That weapons inspectors were kicked out of the country in 1998, and that had Bush used the authority the way Kerry said to, it would have been a real coup for him -- you know, "speak softly, and carry a big stick". The threat of force WORKED. Saddam allowed the inspectors into his country, and they were DOING THEIR JOB. It was Bush who broke his word, and suddenly pulled the inspectors out so he could make war. Also, don't forget the IWR was Oct. 2002, the invasion March 2003. For me, the U.N. resolutions were more important than the IWR, and the last one, Bush didn't get. He should have known right then and there to wait, but he didn't and that's why everything is a big, big mess.

To be honest, I think the "no" votes to the IWR are problematic, too. Are they saying that the possibility of Saddam having WMD is no big deal? Do they really want to protect national security, when they don't even want U.N. weapons inspectors back in Iraq? In 1991, the intelligence community was flabbergasted how far along Saddam's WMD program was -- they had UNDERestimated Saddam's capabilities. It was proper to get the U.N. back in there, and I can tell you, that Saddam would NOT have allowed them in had there not been a threat of force authorized by Congress and backed up by troops on the ground in Kuwait. That's the flip side of all these arguments. But Bush was stupid enough to think he could democratize and keep united a fractured country. Had his administration been competent, he maybe had a 30% chance. With the flagrant incompetence, he's had 0% chance.

Another line of argument I made with my Dad had to do with now. He continued to rail against the Democrats, how they need to cut off funding NOW. So I asked him, "have you called your senator?" I told him to stop complaining about it and start being an active citizen by engaging as a constituent with his elected officials. They DO listen to their constituents. I received no answer from him on that, and then I noticed he didn't bring up that subject again.

[blm]

7. That's easy - it's bunk. Kerry was the oNLY one attacking Bush on the 'war on terror'

and started doing so by the end of 2001, and was the only one beating on Bush for Tora Bora while getting NO BACKUP from any other Dems who were siding with Bush on that.

It wasn't until Wes Clark came into the race that Kerry had another Dem backing his attack on Bush for Toara Bora.

So anyone who claims Kerry wanted no Dems to attack Bush's war on terror is full of shit and lying for their own agenda.

[pretzel4gore]

3. Into the Wild...

McCandless came across as a fascinating young man.....his dream of surviving in the wilds of alaska wasn't that far fetched, but it only took one mistake(...) anyone who hasn't read the Jon Krakauer book is missing an insight into something rarely seen or heard of (the organised homeless people communities in the desert etc McCandless stumbled on, some with street signs and mail service!) circa 1991/92...also McCandless's effect upon some of those he befriended (especially the 80 year old guy who became devoted to chris and whom chris rather heartlessly abandoned). Chris McCandless was from a wealthy family, and he possessed the 'confidence' to try just about anything (his death from 'starvation' actually wasn't from lack of food: it was from delirium associated with overdependence on one type of food)...he would have, had he survived, been a powerful liberal/democratic supporter later on. That goddam bush dodged another bullet imho!
> OT ...many years ago i read a book about a young english guy who also rejected the modern world and its injustices etc...he went to brazil and lived in the amazon jungle for several months(?) with only a small knife...though he also was from a wealthy family, his favorite food (while in england) was things found in the trash, on the street, especially half eaten apples! If anyone knows name or any detail of that book, pleez email me etc...thanks!

[pstans]

5. I made a similar goal after the 2004 election

After the 2004, I wanted to read a book a month. I have done fairly well, but am no working full time, so I don't have as much time. Here are some of the books I have read (* are the books that I highly recommend)...

*Confessions of an Economic Hitman by Perkins
1984 by Orwell
*Homegrown Democrat by Garrison Keillor
What's the Matter with Kansas by Thomas Frank
*Don't Think of An Elephant by George Lakoff
Crashing the Gate by Kos and the MyDD guy
parts of A People's History of the United States by Howard Zinn
The Long Emergency by Kunstler
*Conscience of a Liberal by Paul Wellstone
*The Revolution Will Not Be Televised by Joe Trippi
Strapped: Why America's 20- and 30- Somethings Can't Get Ahead
50 Simple Things You Can Do to Fight the Right
*Hostile Takeover by David Sirota
Hit By A Farm
*Screwed: An Undeclared War on the Middle Class by Thom Hartmann

There's probably a handful of others that I started, but didn't finish.

[erpowers]

9. Conscience of a Liberal

I thought "Conscience of a Liberal" was a great book. It was what created my admiration of Paul Wellstone and the people like Russ Feingold who think and act like him. I may be wrong, but I think you might like the book.

[pstans]

22. Some others I have read

American Fascists by Chris Hedges
Perfectly Legal by David Cay Johnston - about how the tax code benefits the super wealthy. The first few chapters were great and then it got a little too in depth for me.
Rules for Radicals by Saul Alinsky - a must read for any organizer


I am hoping to read Blackwater by Jeremy Scahill, Assault on Reason by Al Gore, and a new book about Russ Feingold called Feingold: A New Democratic Party that comes out at the end of July.

[wildbilln864]

8. I have to recomend...

911 and American Empire: Intellectuals Speak Out!
911=MIHOP!

[Forkboy]

10. Eye of the Needle was Ken Follet,I believe.

Not 100% sure,but close.

[Sisaruus]

11. Since January 1st:

Also a mix of fiction and non-fiction since January 1:.

Death in Venice by Thomas Mann
The Art of Travel by Alain de Bottom
Shame by Annie Ernaux
Promiscuities by Naomi Wolf
They Used to Call Me Snow White by Regina Barreca
At the Bottom of the River by Jamaica Kinkaid
Comfort Me With Apples by Ruth Reichl
Gut Symmetries by Jeanette Winterson
Written on the Body also by Winterson
The God Delusion by Richard Dawkins
On Looking by Lia Purpura
A Man Without a Country by Kurt Vonnegut
The Catonsville Nine by Daniel Berrigan
A Year by the Sea by Joan Anderson
Plus some poetry by Mary Oliver, Anne Sexton, Adrienne Rich, Charles Wright

Currently reading Body Wars: An Activist’s Guide (for work) but spent the weekend making a dent in the pile of New Yorkers instead. At the top of the to-be-read pile (which is only 2,500 deep) – Obama’s latest, Jimmy Carter’s book on Palestine, The End of Faith, and The Divine Right of Capital.

[BurtWorm]

12. My 2007 Reading List so far

Jésus: Anatomie d'un mythe, by Patrick Boistiers (Yes, I did read it in French, and no I didn't understand everything I read--but I understood a lot more than I was expecting to. I was looking for a book in English at my local library on the Jesus myth, and though I didn't find one, I happened upon Boistiers's book by happy chance in the foreign language section.)

Freethinkers, by Susan Jacoby (Excellent survey of secularism in the US, countering the right's picture of the country as a Christian Nation with facts about some of the major freethinkers who influenced policy and popular sentiment, from Tom Paine and Tom Jefferson, to Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Robert Ingersoll, and on to the present.)

Betraying Spinoza, by Rebecca Goldstein (An excellent little book explaining Spinoza's place in Jewish and world intellectual history. Goldstein, a novelist and philosophy professor, writes very entertainingly and lucidly about her experience with Spinoza's life and philosophy, from the time she first encountered him, courtesy of a disapproving teacher, as am Orthodox yeshiva student in the 1960s, to her close acquaintance with him as professor of a course on 16th Century philosophers.)

The Heretic and the Courtier, by Matthew Stewart (Interesting but not fully satisfying <for me> book about Spinoza and Leibniz, how they resemble each other and where they part company. If you've Wittgenstein's Poker and/or Rousseau's Dog, you'll probably enjoy this book. I might have enjoyed it more if I hadn't read Goldstein's little book first.)

The Closing of the Western Mind, by Charles Freeman (Very well done history of the Church's mostly negative impact on the intellectual development of the Western World. Also a good history, and clear explicator, of Christian thought, East and West, in the first half of the first millennium.)

1973 Nervous Breakdown, by Andreas Killen (Enjoyable history of the watershed year in which Watergate broke wide open, PBS's An American Family became the first reality TV show, the Vietnam War was officially ended and American POWs began returning home, the New York Dolls hit it big, Mean Streets and American Graffitti premiered, Gravity's Rainbow was published, the Symbionese Liberation Army first burst on the scene, OPEC began the oil embargo that led to the first energy crisis, etc., etc., etc. I wonder if someone who doesn't remember that time would enjoy it as much as I did.)

Also reading:

Theologico-Political Treatise, by Spinoza
Mathematics for the Nonmathematician, by Morris Kline
Gulliver's Travels, by Jonathan Swift
The God Delusion, by Richard Dawkins

[Kiouni]

13. A Holden Caulfield fan!

I love this book, have you read Salinger's other books? I loved 9 stories. Fantastic.

[ncrainbowgrrl]

14. What I've read recently

The Last True Story I'll ever tell-
http://ec2.images-amazon.com/images/P/1594482012.01._BO2,204,203,200_PIsitb-dp-500-arrow,TopRight,45,-64_OU01_AA240_SH20_SCLZZZZZZZ_.jpg
From Publishers Weekly
Having joined the National Guard for the tuition benefits, Crawford, like many of his contemporaries, never expected to do any heavy lifting. Early on, he admits his is "the story of a group of college students... who wanted nothing to do with someone else's war." But when his Florida National Guard unit was activated, he was shipped to Kuwait shortly before the invasion of Iraq. Armed with shoddy equipment, led by incompetent officers and finding release in the occasional indulgence in pharmaceuticals, Crawford cared little for the mission and less for the Iraqis. "Mostly we were guarding gas stations and running patrols," he explains. As for Iraqi civilians, "I didn't give a shit what happened to any of them," he confesses after inadvertently saving an Iraqi boy from a mob beating. Crawford's disdain grows with each extension of his tour, and he leaves Iraq broke, rudderless and embittered. Unfortunately, Crawford dresses up his story in strained metaphors and tired clichés such as "truth engulfed me like a storm cloud" and "you can never go back home." Despite its pretensions, Crawford's story is not the classic foot soldier's memoir and should provide enough gristle to please military memoir fans.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Take This Job and Ship It: How Corporate Greed and Brain-Dead Politics Are Selling Out America (Hardcover)
by Byron Dorgan
http://ec2.images-amazon.com/images/P/031235522X.01._BO2,204,203,200_PIsitb-dp-500-arrow,TopRight,45,-64_OU01_AA240_SH20_SCLZZZZZZZ_.jpg


The Lonely Patient: How We Experience Illness by Michael Stein


Without You: A Memoir of Love, Loss, and the Musical Rent (Paperback)
by Anthony Rapp
http://ec2.images-amazon.com/images/P/0743269772.01._BO2,204,203,200_PIsitb-dp-500-arrow,TopRight,45,-64_OU01_AA198_SH20_SCLZZZZZZZ_.jpg

Losing America: Confronting a Reckless and Arrogant Presidency (Hardcover)
by Robert C. Byrd (Author)
http://ec1.images-amazon.com/images/P/0393059421.01._BO2,204,203,200_PIsitb-dp-500-arrow,TopRight,45,-64_OU01_AA240_SH20_SCLZZZZZZZ_.jpg

[grannylib]

15. Here's my list for 2007:

Fiction:
The latest John Sandford "Prey" book - can't keep the titles straight!
Latest Patricia Cornwell, ditto
New "Pern" book by Anne McCafferey's son, ditto
Finally got around to reading both "1984" and "Animal Farm"
Fantasy series "Game of Thrones" "Clash of Swords" and "Something? of Kings" by George R. R. Martin
Fannie Flagg "Just Can't Wait to Get to Heaven"
"The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime" and "A Spot of Bother" can't remember the author, sorry, the latter absolutely cracked me up
Tried reading "Mrs. Dalloway" for about the third time and just CAN'T do it.


Non-fiction
"Worse than Watergate" John Dean
"Conscience of a Liberal" Paul Wellstone
"A Call to Service" John Kerry
Just picked up Jimmy Carter's book on the Israel/Palestine conflict, haven't opened it yet but I will tomorrow
"The Middle East for Dummies" **Highly recommended** :-)
"Now, Discover your Strengths" - Marcus Buckingham
couple of field guides to moths/butterflies and insects...getting ready for warm weather!
some craft books - mosaics and beaded jewelry and raised garden beds

I know I forgot some but oh well

[B0S0X87]

16. Might as well give my own list

From best to worst:

Founding Brothers- Joseph Ellis- Phenomenal work of history
The Tipping Point- Malcolm Gladwell
A Confederacy of Dunces- John Kennedy Toole- hilarious fiction
Blind Side: The Evolution of a Game- Michael Lewis- a must-read for any football fan
High Fidelity- Nick Hornby
The Audacity of Hope- Barack Obama- I generally don't like "platform" books, but Obama is as good a writer as he is a politician
The Hitchiker's Guide to the Galaxy- Douglas Adams- Can't believe it took me this long to read it
The House- Robert Remini- Excellent history of the House of Representatives, but too broad
The Most Exclusive Club- Lewis Gould- Another good history of Congress (this time the senate), but the author's contempt for the senate can be a bit too much at times
Asassination Vacation- Sarah Vowell- Very funny, but I felt like I missed the point
Catch me if you Can- Frank Abagnale- Just couldn't get into it
Napoleon Bonaparte- Paul Johnson- Way too short for a biography of Napoleon. Can anyone reccomend a better one?

Currently reading: Henry Clay: Statesman for the Union by Robert Remini. Great biography of one of the most important figures in American history.

[Adsos Letter]

18. Hmmmm......

Subject: Hmmmmm...
Message:
"Adventism and the American Republic" by Morgan

"On the Road to Armageddon" by Weber

"When Time Shall Be No More" by Boyer

"Leo Strauss and the American Right" by Drury

"Terror and Civilization" by Drury

"The Politics of Rage" by Carter

"Right Wing Populism in America" by Berlet & Lyons

"The Culture of the Cold War" by Whitfield

"Moral Purity and Persecution in History" by Moore

"Europe's Inner Demons" by Cohn

I just retired in January so I have had some "extra" time to read...going back to University in the Fall to finally complete an MA in History..."Ahoy Captain!!!" focused reading ahead...and some writing to go with it. :scared:

[shimmergal]

19. Books read this year:

(they're mostly fiction)

Shinn, Sharon - Dark Moon Defender (3rd of a fantasy series, not quite as good as nos. 1 and 2)

Russell, Mary Doria - The Sparrow (terrific, semi-classic SF novel)

Peters, Elizabeth - The Serpent on thoe Crown, Tomb of the Golden Bird (Mystery & adventure with turn-of-the-century Egyptologists)

Baddiell, David - The Secret Purposes ( Jewish intellectual & his wife flee Nazi Germany to take refuge in wartime Britain. A book which left me with mixed reactions.)

Owens, Robin - Heart Choice (High quality fantasy/romance cross-genre novel)

Arnoult, Darnell - Beautifully written 1st novel about two southern families and how their lives are transformed by a schizophrenic woman's actions

Gabaldon, Diana - A Breath of Snow and Ashes (Sixth novel in her time-travel to the 18th century saga. The American revolution starts in this one.)

High Country News - Give and Take; How the Clinton Administration's Public Lands Offensive Transformed the American West. (What the subtitle says. Clinton's and Babbitt's public lands work hasn't all been undone by the Bush Admin. yet, although they're trying.)

Jamees, Roby - Beyond the Hedge. (Fun fantasy romance: Hard-driving American financial expert finds love in a British "Brigadoon"-like county.)

Stirling, S. M. - Dies the Fire and A Meeting in Corvallis. (Post-apocalyptic alternate-history saga set in Oregon. Fascinating, bloody, implausible, and thought-provoking.)

Iverson, Kristen - Molly Brown: Unravelling the Myth. (First reliable biography of the woman behind the "Unsinkable Molly Brown" legend.)

Wow. Not a political book in the lot. There are reasons (including that I skim a lot of them but don't note the titles down. I intend to order and read Al Gore's new book, though.)

[LSK]

20. ok

- Jimmy Carters Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid

- John F. Kerry: The Complete Biography By The Boston Globe Reporters Who Know Him Best

- Finished off Paul Krugman's The Great Unraveling

- Read half of Fiasco

- Up to page 120 on Al Gore's Assault on Reason

I was trying to do one book a month but that plan fell through in March. My problem is I jump from one book to another without finishing them.

[Dr. Strange]

21. A Suggestion

You should take it over to Goodreads, along with your reviews. Unless you're already a member, that is.

A good site.

[Enoch1981]

23. Voracious reader

I read quite a bit so this list is of the best books read since January:

Jackson,'Dead Run'
Cohen & Wollock, 'Etiquette for outlaws'
Hirsch, 'Hurricane'
Adams, 'The straight dope'
The Harper-Collins NRSV study bible*
The ESV Reformation study bible*
Wiseman, 'Queen Bees and wannebees' (adult queen bees are sexy, LOL)
Freedberg, 'Brother Love'
Igguiden, 'The dangerous book for boys'
Leveritt, 'The devil's knot'
Wilson, 'Where's my jetpack?'
Wertham, 'The sign of cain'
Barret & Mingo,'WC Privy's big fat bathroom companion'
Dufresne, 'The lie that tells a truth'
Springer, 'A love to die for'/'Blood rush'
Spencer, 'The Playwright's Guidebook'

(*read as part of personal bible study; concurrently with leisure reading)