What are you reading?

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Oman
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Re: What are you reading?

Post by Oman »

+1 on Born to Run. Really fun and you learn a lot too.

Some others I liked:
A Few Seconds of Panic by Stefan Fatsis. A buddy goes through Denver Broncos training camp as a place kicker.
Motherless Brooklyn by Jonathan Lethem. Cool story about a detective with Tourette's Syndrome.
The Fortress of Solitude by Jonathan Lethem. Black boy and white boy growing up as best friends in Brooklyn.
The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien. Classic book mixing fiction and non- on Vietnam and its aftermath on soldiers.
Going After Cacciato by Tim O'Brien. Wow. Another Vietnam classic I should have read much earlier about a private who deserts his post to walk 8,000 miles to Paris for peace talks.
Bel Canto by Ann Patchett. Terrorists in South America bust into a lavish birthday party for the vice president and hold hostage dozens, including the world's greatest soprano opera singer.
Gould's Book of Fish by Richard Flanagan. Wild story about life in a Tasmanian penal colony.
Bill Graham Presents. Memoir of the rock promoter.
American Chestnut by Susan Freinkel. Natural history of the rise and fall of the great tree that once dominated the Eastern American landscape.
Falconer on the Edge by Rachel Dickinson. Profile of the nation's best falconer, who trains raptors to kill grouse in Wyoming.
Shell Games by Craig Welch. Life and death among Pacific Northwest gangstas trying to make millions cornering the worldwide market on giant clams.
Without a Paddle by Warren Richey. Memoir of a 50-year-old guy fresh off a divorce who tries to heal himself by entering a three-week kayak paddle race around Florida.

And if you have boys at home, you have to get Backyard Ballistics by William Gurstelle. How to blow up potatoes and other stuff with common goods from Home Depot.
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anthonylebaron
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Re: What are you reading?

Post by anthonylebaron »

I'm in the middle of All the Pretty Horses by Cormac McCarthy. Great read, especially if you're into the Southwest/Mexico.
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traderaaron
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Re: What are you reading?

Post by traderaaron »

I was really awakened to the constitutional tragedies of the Civil War in reading The Real Lincoln, http://www.amazon.com/Real-Lincoln-Abra ... 0761536418" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;.
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jrbren_vt
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Re: What are you reading?

Post by jrbren_vt »

Just finished
King of Travelers: Jesus' Lost Years in India - Edward T. Martin
Of particular interest since for one who has been or will be trekking in Nepal and Ladakh.
My trek group visited the Hemis monastery in Ladakh mentioned in the book. Also of interested since I had not heard these theories before. I recommend.
Nanda Devi: The Tragic Expedition - John Roskelly
Another big mountain expedition story, well written. I recommend again.

Now: GPS owners manual, just got a new GPS ...
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ndolbeare
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Re: What are you reading?

Post by ndolbeare »

Currently reading All the President's Men and just ordered the following:

The Scarlet Letter
You Are Here: Why We Can Find Our Way to the Moon, But Get Lost in the Mall
And the Sea Will Tell
Whale Warriors: The Battle at the Bottom of the World to Save the Planet's Largest Mammals
Julius Caesar
Devil in the White City
Orthodoxy
Service Included: Four-Star Secrets of an Eavesdropping Waiter
Why We Buy: The Science of Shopping
History of Philosophy (volumes 7 & 8 )
pudgy
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Re: What are you reading?

Post by pudgy »

legacy of secrecy by lamar waldron and thom hartmann....if you still believe a lone gunman..who couldn"t shoot straight..assassinated kennedy....you won't after reading this...incredible research..
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Kiefer
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Re: What are you reading?

Post by Kiefer »

Point North wrote: The Final Frontiersman: Heimo Korth and His Family, Alone in Alaska's Arctic Wilderness. This guy was one of the last trappers who set up a cabin and ran traplines while raising a family in the northern Brooks Range. By the time he left the wilderness, the U.S. government had passed regulations which made his lifestyle impossible to repeat. A very good read on living in the wilds of Alaska.
http://www.amazon.com/Final-Frontiersma ... 896&sr=8-1" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Haven't read the book but downloaded the documentary on this last week. Spectacular story! The arms on Heimo are like tree trunks! :shock:

Currently reading:
Desert Solitare (Edward Abbey)
High Alaska (Johnathan Waterman)
Quicksilver (Neil Stephenson) non-mountain book

Looking forward in getting around to check out Viesturs new one.
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lordhelmut
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Re: What are you reading?

Post by lordhelmut »

[quoteCurrently reading:
Desert Solitare (Edward Abbey)
][/quote]

Kiefer, this looks solid, just reserved it at the library.

Just got done reading "Instand Karma" by local ski bum/writer/etc Wayne Sheldrake , very interesting take on basing your life around skiing, as well as growing up around Wolf Creek and skiing the Sand Dunes.

Other notables :

High Exposure - David Brashear
Lone Survivor - Marcus Luttrell - incredible (and very unfortunate) story of a SEAL team in Afghanistan
Walk in the Woods - Bill Bryson
Eiger Dreams - Jon Krakauer
Gates of Fire - Stephen Pressfield - detailed account of the 300 Spartans and much much more......
Savage Nation - Michael Savage


And of course "Halfway to Heaven" was an interesting, amusing and quick read.
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jlarocco
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Re: What are you reading?

Post by jlarocco »

Nothing to do with mountains or even the outdoors, but...

Finishing up "The Algorithm Design Manual"

Just starting "Tcl and the Tk Toolkit"

And been slowly working my way through "The Complete Stories of J.G. Ballard"
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skiwall
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Re: What are you reading?

Post by skiwall »

jlarocco wrote: Finishing up "The Algorithm Design Manual"
ooohhh... That sound super useful for my research. I read a review online that says it's an easy read. Is that true?
"A good woman knows her place is in the backcountry." - PW '08
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Jim Davies
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Re: What are you reading?

Post by Jim Davies »

I'm halfway through "Beyond the Mountain" by Steve House. A decent climber memoir. Also started "The Last Of His Kind", the biography of Brad Washburn by David Roberts (my favorite mountaineering author). Awesome book about one of the great American climbers.

I just remembered that I haven't finished "Borderline" by Nevada Barr. Her novels are good outdoor-oriented murder/mystery stuff, although I hope most National Park rangers don't face that much mayhem routinely. :roll:

The "Snowy Torrents" books are highly interesting reading, if you're interested in understanding backcountry accidents (avalanches specifically). Kind of hard to find, though.
Climbing at altitude is like hitting your head against a brick wall — it's great when you stop. -- Chris Darwin
I'm pretty tired. I think I'll go home now. -- Forrest Gump
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jlarocco
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Re: What are you reading?

Post by jlarocco »

skiwall wrote:
jlarocco wrote: Finishing up "The Algorithm Design Manual"
ooohhh... That sound super useful for my research. I read a review online that says it's an easy read. Is that true?
Yeah, it's definitely an easy read for an algorithms book. It covers a lot of ground for 600 pages, though, so it's not as in depth as something like "Introduction to Algorithms." In fact, the second half of the book is just a catalog of algorithms, giving an overview of what the algorithm's all about, similar algorithms, pointers to more information, and usually listing some implementations.

If you're doing cutting algorithm research you'll probably be disappointed, but if you just need a good general overview of algorithms it's excellent. The references and pointers in the second half of the book could be useful in either case.
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