Last Book That You Read- Non- Fiction

Gravity's Silhouette wrote:

Just finished THE LOST CITY OF Z (Five-Stars). Had bought the book over the summer and just now got around to reading it after finding out that a movie had not only been made about the subject, but was coming out soon with Charlie Hunnam, Sienna Miller, Tom Holland (excellent in Captain America:Civil War; made me interested in SPIDER-MAN again) and Robert Pattinson.

Just started: "AFRICANS IN AMERICA: America's Journey Through Slavery".

Guess we don't have many readers on this forum.

For anyone who cares (probably not a lot), AFRICANS IN AMERICA was a very informative, moving and highly educational look at slavery (and no countries or continents were spared from this introspection). As a little kid I had always wondered how slavery got started; how some people just felt alright kidnapping people and ripping them from their homes and never letting them see their families or loved ones again.

I felt no guilt as I read this book; felt no shame, and at no time did I ever consider giving up my white privilege. But I must say, if you're a lover of history, this is one of the best historical documents I've ever read. IT doesn't beat you over the head with guilt or shame. It's a mostly judgement-free exploration of how slavery came about.

This is what I finished after AFRICANS IN AMERICA:

Death Artist, The (Santlofer, Jonathan)
Perfect Murder, Perfect Town (Schiller, Laurence)
One Year After (Forstchen, William)
Goerings List (Pollock, J.C.)
Nod (Barnes, Adrian)
Footprints of God, The (Iles, Greg)
Krakatoa (Winchester, Simon)
Defending Jacob (Landay, William)
Code to Zero (Follett, Ken)
Interpretation of Murder, The (Rubenfeld, Jed)

Currently reading:
Ice Limit, The (Preston, Douglas and Child, Lincoln)
Game of Thrones (Martin, R.R.)

Gravity's Silhouette wrote:

Gravity's Silhouette wrote:

Just finished THE LOST CITY OF Z (Five-Stars). Had bought the book over the summer and just now got around to reading it after finding out that a movie had not only been made about the subject, but was coming out soon with Charlie Hunnam, Sienna Miller, Tom Holland (excellent in Captain America:Civil War; made me interested in SPIDER-MAN again) and Robert Pattinson.

Just started: "AFRICANS IN AMERICA: America's Journey Through Slavery".

Guess we don't have many readers on this  forum.

For anyone who cares (probably not a lot), AFRICANS IN AMERICA was a very informative, moving and highly educational look at slavery (and no countries or continents were spared from this introspection). As a little kid I had always wondered how slavery got started; how some people just felt alright kidnapping people and ripping them from their homes and never letting them see their families or loved ones again.

I felt no guilt as I read this book; felt no shame, and at no time did I ever consider giving up my white privilege. But I must say, if you're a lover of history, this is one of the best historical documents I've ever read. IT doesn't beat you over the head with guilt or shame. It's a mostly judgement-free exploration of how slavery came about.

This is what I finished after AFRICANS IN AMERICA:

Death Artist, The (Santlofer, Jonathan)
Perfect Murder, Perfect Town (Schiller, Laurence)
One Year After (Forstchen, William)
Goerings List (Pollock, J.C.)
Nod (Barnes, Adrian)
Footprints of God, The (Iles, Greg)
Krakatoa (Winchester, Simon)
Defending Jacob (Landay, William)
Code to Zero (Follett, Ken)
Interpretation of Murder, The (Rubenfeld, Jed)

Currently reading:
Ice Limit, The (Preston, Douglas and Child, Lincoln)
Game of Thrones (Martin, R.R.)

I'm a reader, but I have more books than minutes to spare at the moment, so finding it hard to fit everything in. However, Africans in America sounds interesting, so I'm sure I'll get to it one day. As always, refreshingly conservative, Grav, as ironic as that may sound.

I'm currently reading an Australian finance book called The Barefoot Investor. Not as dry as you'd expect from a book about money, and because the author knows it, he endeavours to lighten it with humour and relatability. And with the included testimonials, highly informative and rather inspiring.

Currently reading 'The Battle For Bond' on the non-fiction front, an account of the failed pre-EON attempt to get a Bond movie off the ground in the late Fifties and the resulting years of legal battles after Fleming published the resultant story as Thunderball.

Blunt Instrument wrote:

Currently reading 'The Battle For Bond' on the non-fiction front, an account of the failed pre-EON attempt to get a Bond movie off the ground in the late Fifties and the resulting years of legal battles after Fleming published the resultant story as Thunderball.    

Excellent read, that.

I'm enjoying it ... the print's on the small side though, dammit.

Ah, the joys of middle-age.

FieldsMan wrote:

I'm a reader, but I have more books than minutes to spare at the moment, so finding it hard to fit everything in. However, Africans in America sounds interesting, so I'm sure I'll get to it one day. As always, refreshingly conservative, Grav, as ironic as that may sound.

I'm currently reading an Australian finance book called The Barefoot Investor. Not as dry as you'd expect from a book about money, and because the author knows it, he endeavours to lighten it with humour and relatability. And with the included testimonials, highly informative and rather inspiring.

I was half asleep when I wrote that, as you can probably tell from the time stamp. Apologies to anyone who may have thought I was being condescending. I'm sure we have plenty of readers on the forum

Well, you see, when the Atlanta Falcons lost in the Super Bowl 10 weeks ago, I couldn't stand to look at television anymore. And by "television" I mean cable and regular broadcasting. I had sort of inoculated myself from the politics and the Trump Inauguration by pretty much watching nothing but ESPN and FOX Sports during the NFL playoffs, plus religiously devouring anything on the Internet related to the NFL playoffs, but obviously a lot of stuff about the Falcons. The playoffs and The Super Bowl were sort of a beautiful dream...a much needed distraction from the problems of the real world.

And, so, when the Falcons crashed and ended up blowing that game.....well, I canceled my cable subscription and threw myself into catching up on reading a lot of books that I've had sitting around for a while. And it wasn't just the Super Bowl loss either. I found that I could no longer stomach watching any news program. I admit to enjoying a bit of perverse satisfaction at seeing Donald Trump beat Hillary Clinton, but that's as far as it goes.

I've been clean and sober from tv for 10 weeks now. Averaging close to a book a week.

I'm still reading Game of Thrones, but also started SLIVER by Ira Levin.

Not at all, Grav. This hasn't been the most active or popular threads on this forum, even in its glory days.

Afraid I gave up on 'The Battle For Bond' ... it got to the stage where the legal minutiae was (for me, anyway) making for a dry, uninvolving read.

Ah that's a shame. I haven't read it for a few years now, but I remember being enthralled by it all. Apples and oranges I suppose.

I'm currently reading Australia Felix from The Fortunes of Richard Mahoney trilogy. Excellent read up until the last Part, but it's starting to pick up again. Maybe because I'm keener to move onto Fleming's TMWTGG, Sir Roger's LALD Production Diary (which I finally got my hands on) or two other books waiting to be read!

I definitely intend to read the other two novels of the Richard Mahoney trilogy. As good as it has been so far, it's exhausting. Testament to the author for creating such an undisguised world and full characters.

x

Erica Ambler wrote:

I'm finally reading Mein Kampf. A friend bought me a copy from India where it's published as a Vintage Classic. I'm not kidding.

Been meaning to read it for a while, but couldn't buy from amazon - didn't want to get a thousand 'seeing as you enjoyed 'Mein Kampf' you'll love this!' emails.

Yes, I have that Indian edition too. Mussolini's Memoirs should be next on your list.

Erica Ambler wrote:

I'm finally reading Mein Kampf. A friend bought me a copy from India where it's published as a Vintage Classic. I'm not kidding.

Been meaning to read it for a while, but couldn't buy from amazon - didn't want to get a thousand 'seeing as you enjoyed 'Mein Kampf' you'll love this!' emails.

Goebells' Diaries can't be far behind.

Erica Ambler wrote:

I'm finally reading Mein Kampf. A friend bought me a copy from India where it's published as a Vintage Classic. I'm not kidding.

Been meaning to read it for a while, but couldn't buy from amazon - didn't want to get a thousand 'seeing as you enjoyed 'Mein Kampf' you'll love this!' emails.

I have to admit, I've been curious to read it myself. Might have to fly to India. What do you think of it?

India seems to have a big obsession with Hitler and the Natzees. Guessing there must've been a chapter in Mein Kampf titled 'Mein Street ist Mein Toilet.'

x

Erica Ambler wrote:

CJB wrote:

India seems to have a big obsession with Hitler and the Natzees. Guessing there must've been a chapter in Mein Kampf titled 'Mein Street ist Mein Toilet.'

Der Fuhrer regarded Indians as fellow Aryans.

Curry and schnitzel are a mean combo.

In all seriousness though, there's a bit of a warped view amongst some Indians that Hitler was OK because he fought the British. The "enemy of my enemy is my friend" mentality has never been short of absurdities.

x

x

Weird stuff. I suspect there's a cultural difference at play in terms of valuing individual life, liberty, and dignity. A historical genocide of millions in Europe has less impact when - and pardon if I'm being overly harsh - a country sees thousands die in mudslides and whatnot every other week.

In addition, I find the innocent (and otherwise) praise Hitler receives for lifting the economy out of its doldrums with his sheer Austrian will baffling. Most of the civilised world managed to get out of the Depression concurrently and did so without resorting to Fascism.

x

Is it good, Ambler? Remember seeing him promoting it, and it sounded interesting.

As a sceptic, I should probably get around to 'The Men Who Stare At Goats' sometime too ... the movie was just OK.

x

I'm on Twitter but I'm trying to bring it down from the inside and make it work for me. I don't tweet anything controversial but have a fair following. It's good for promoting writing to a wider audience, when I get around to it.

Erica Ambler wrote:

Blunt Instrument wrote:

Is it good, Ambler?

It's a standard Ronson paperback with the usual pluses and minuses- interesting, topical and funny, but really an overly expanded feature article. Fortunately, I hate Twitter with a vengeance, seeing it as the modern-day equivalent of Salem at worst and the village stocks at best, so that makes this book one of the most disturbing things I've read. Clearly Fred West had nothing on the sanctimonious right-on cunts of Twitter.

Read this excerpt and you'll know whether it's for you:

https://www.nytimes.com/2015/02/15/magazine/how-one-stupid-tweet-ruined-justine-saccos-life.html

Yeah, it was this story he told in the interview to illustrate the book's theme. Tweeted a gag (taking the piss out of her own 'white privilege', but utterly misinterpreted) ... life ruined.

I enjoy engaging with Twitter's film community (which is what I use my personal account for 95% of the time) and reminds me of how forums were in their heyday. I tried using Twitter for news, but it gets too complicated and, honestly, the commenatries about Trump, sexual assault, etc. get exhausting.

Anyway, I got Oliver Reed's autobiography (REED ALL ABOUT ME) for Christmas and it's fucking great.