What was the last book you've read?

[NightWatcher]

For me it was the gripping account of a big girl who with the help of her Teddy Bear learned that Big Girls Used The Potty.

It was so exciting I read it about a dozen more times to my little one.

[Bertha Venation]

1. You rock, Night Watcher

Anyone who reads to his/her child ROCKS in my book.

[dixiegrrrrl]

3. Best gift you can give a child...

I believe that with all my heart, and have seen the results of early reading.

[ballardgirl]

19. I said those same words

this morning. Our 8-year old neighbor guy loves to read and his parents definitely contributed to that.

[Aristus]

2. "The Last 100 Days" by John Toland.

About the last 100 days of the European conflict during WWII. It was published in the early 60's, and some of the history may be inaccurate in light of subsequent historical investigation. But it is very, very readable.

I look forward to tackling Toland's 2-volume bio of Hitler someday.

[rug]

23. Hey, I'm reading that right now!

That argument in the first chapter between Hitler and Goering about whether recalled officers would keep their rank was eye-opening. They met to discuss the Red Army offensive and ended up arguing about that. According to the footnotes those meetings were stenographically recorded at Hitler's order.

[Aristus]

24. Happy reading.

I found that chapter eye-opening, as well.

[Yavin4]

4. A Dance with Dragons

Yes. I am a nerd.

[1-Old-Man]

5. Don't feel alone, I finished the series over the winter.

Folks that are watching the series on TV sure have a lot to look forward to in the last two episodes of this season. The nice thing is that there's really no clue about all the things that are about to happen.

[Chan790]

6. As in finished?

None recently. I'm slogging through Infinite Jest, Gravity's Rainbow, À la recherche du temps perdu and Foucault's Pendulum all at the same time as they've been my white whales for years. I read one until I just can't read it anymore, then I pick up one of the other three.

It's a carousel of epic-length dense prose. I'm going to get through these four finally. It's a major life achievement for a book nerd. I may throw a costumed open-bar bacchanal in the aftermath.

[TrogL]

8. It took me 5 tries to get the hang of Gravity's Rainbow

Didn't make any sense until I read Jung's theories of synchronicity.

[TrogL]

7. Carte Blanche by Jeffery Deaver - a James Bond book

[1-Old-Man]

9. In Cold Blood, Truman Capote

I'm trying to catch up on a whole bunch of books I should have read years ago. In Cold Blood was the last, Shirer's The Rise and Fall of the 3rd Reich before it and John Keegan's history, The American Civil War before that. Oh, and I got around to reading Richard Dana's Two Years Before the Mast too - and man am I pleased I got around to reading that one.

[raccoon]

32. That's about my favorite book. nt

[fizzgig]

35. i should give that book another shot

read it in ninth grade english and it bored the crap out of me. i have a feeling i'd appreciate it much more now.

[avebury]

10. Mr. Churchill's Secretary

by Susan Elia Macneal.

Smart woman in an era when smart women were under appreciated. There are two more books in the series.


From amazon.com:

London, 1940. Winston Churchill has just been sworn in, war rages across the Channel, and the threat of a Blitz looms larger by the day. But none of this deters Maggie Hope. She graduated at the top of her college class and possesses all the skills of the finest minds in British intelligence, but her gender qualifies her only to be the newest typist at No. 10 Downing Street. Her indefatigable spirit and remarkable gifts for codebreaking, though, rival those of even the highest men in government, and Maggie finds that working for the prime minister affords her a level of clearance she could never have imagined—and opportunities she will not let pass. In troubled, deadly times, with air-raid sirens sending multitudes underground, access to the War Rooms also exposes Maggie to the machinations of a menacing faction determined to do whatever it takes to change the course of history.

Ensnared in a web of spies, murder, and intrigue, Maggie must work quickly to balance her duty to King and Country with her chances for survival. And when she unravels a mystery that points toward her own family’s hidden secrets, she’ll discover that her quick wits are all that stand between an assassin’s murderous plan and Churchill himself.

In this daring debut, Susan Elia MacNeal blends meticulous research on the era, psychological insight into Winston Churchill, and the creation of a riveting main character, Maggie Hope, into a spectacularly crafted novel.

[raptor_rider]

11. The Green Mile

Again by Stephen King. Love both the book and movie.

[fizzgig]

36. i just finished that (again)

great read

[Lionel Mandrake]

12. I'm in the middle of about 37 books, but ...

the last one I actually read from cover to cover was Radioactivity: A History of a Mysterious Science" by Marjorie C. Malley.

IMO scientists, historians, and the general public will all find this book worthwhile.

[MrSlayer]

13. "Absolute Truth 101 Proof" by Rex Brown of Pantera.

He comes off as a total arrogant douchebag. Some good stuff in there but it's mostly how great he is.

He's not.

[Shankapotomus]

14. Evolution for Everyone

By David Sloan Wilson

[olddots]

15. just finishing This Will Make You Smarter

edited by John Brockman and I want my money back . actually I've read his series ,he started The Edge .org

[HERVEPA]

16. Frog and Toad, Tearwater Tea story to my granddaughters.

[tavernier]

17. Queen Isabella

by Alison Weir.

Interesting, but written as a documentary and I much prefer her historical novels.

[mokawanis]

18. Cormac McCarthy - The Road

There's some stunningly good writing in that book. When I was reading it on a lunch break one day I had to stop because I was afraid I was going to start crying and I didn't want to return to work looking a mess.

[Arugula Latte]

39. Oh man. That book is harrowing.

The feeling it evokes sticks with you, too.

[First Speaker]

20. "Target Lancer", by Max Allan Collins

...I love the Nate Heller novels...

[noamnety]

21. The Civil War by Bruce Catton.

I spent May reading this along with one of my students, and explaining wtf it all meant to her so she could pass her history class. "They went on a reconnaissance mission, but were attacked on their left flank" means nothing to a person who doesn't know what recon is, or what flanks are. I have no interest in battle history and I'm an art teacher, but at least I was in the army and can read and paraphrase.

[pipi_k]

22. Can't believe it took

So long to decide to read it, but I just finished "The Picture Of Dorian Gray"

Although I'm not sure I would have appreciated it as much in my younger years

[murielm99]

25. The Book Thief.

It is a YA book, and very good. It has been around for awhile, but I don't always read young adult novels.

I am reading a Walter Mosley book now.

[Cane4Dems]

26. The Book of Basketball by Bill Simmons

[Jasana]

27. The Trouble with Islam Today by Irshad Manji

It was interesting to say the least.

[Earth_First]

28. The Dude and the Zen Master -Jeff Bridges, Bernie Glassman

A really quick read and offered a lot of insight both on Jeff Bridges, the Cohen brothers and some interpersonal relationships within my own life.

I reccommend it.

[CBGLuthier]

29. The Anubis Gates by Tim Powers

Before that I had hunted down a copy of the author's Drawing of the Dark, which I had read when it was new. Enjoyed it so much I then read his most acclaimed work, The Anubis Gates.

Time travel and magic interweaved with real history. Highly recommend.

[Shrek]

30. "The Last Policeman"

Can't wait for the sequel.

[NoPasaran]

31. "1493" by Charles Mann

[raccoon]

33. FOLLOW THE RIVER by James Alexander Thom. Based on a true story of Mary Ingles,

who trekked hundreds of miles after escaping from Indian captivity.

Great book but graphic violence in it.

[Neoma]

34. Destiny Disrupted: A History of the World Through Islamic Eyes by Mir Tamim Ansary

[HarveyDarkey]

37. The Greatest Show on Earth - Richard Dawkins

[Arugula Latte]

38. The Bonesetter's Daughter by Amy Tan

I'd had it for years and finally read it. Good read. I like the way she writes.

[lumpy]

40. Paramedic to the Prince(Saudi Arabian). Previously read Driving the Saudis,(Hollywood chauffeur).

Interesting take on how Saudi royalty lives. Mighty royalty, I'd say.