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Off White
climber
Tenino, WA
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Apr 28, 2010 - 11:01pm PT
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Jaybro said: The Baroque cycle; I'll give quarter to anyone who can get half way through just Quicksilver without skipping pages, take about someone who needs a new editor. And this from the Author of Snow crash!
You owe me a quarter Jay. I would think that widefetish thing would develop your patience, I mean who wouldn't love to do an off width and skip a few moves?
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chez
Social climber
chicago ill
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Apr 28, 2010 - 11:11pm PT
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a confederacy of dunces jonathon kenedy otoole. out of print
Otoole or toole i can't remember, kind of rough as he died before it went to print.
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stevep
Boulder climber
Salt Lake, UT
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Apr 28, 2010 - 11:46pm PT
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I'm with Jaybro. Loved Snowcrash, Diamond Age, Cryptonomicon, and even the newer Anathem. Couldn't get into the Baroque books.
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IntheFog
climber
Mostly the next place
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Apr 28, 2010 - 11:50pm PT
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Great question. Thanks for asking it, and thanks to everyone who answered. I've got some good ideas for summer reading.
With all those great suggestions, I hate to add to your options, especially when it's a BIG book, but...
If you like history that's compellingly written and driven by character and plot, you might like Robert Caro's "The Master of the Senate." It's about LBJ's rise to power in the Senate in the 1950s. It focuses on his struggle to solve a really hard puzzle -- how can a Southerner become President? Reading about his maneuvers to keep Southerners thinking he's one of them, while also convincing Northern liberals that he's one of them, sounds dull and boring. It isn't. LBJ has the morals of the Godfather, except he's a real guy.
As a bonus, once you are done, you'll have a much better handle on what exactly is going on in Washington these days. You'll see that some things haven't changed.
Maybe you will even agree with those who say quarrel and strife are inevitable in the age of the Kali Yuga.
Here's what President Obama said about LBJ:
I’m fascinated by Lyndon Johnson; there’s a piece of him in me. That kind of hunger – desperate to win, please, succeed, dominate – I don’t know any politician who doesn’t have some of that reptilian side to him. But that’s not the dominant part of me.
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Michelle
Social climber
The sucking black hole that is Tuolumne County
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Apr 28, 2010 - 11:54pm PT
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the Sparrow and Children of God by Mary Doria Russel
the Anita Blake Vampire Hunter series by Laurell K Hamilton, although the later books in the series are just downright pornographic, so start at the beginning
Dresden Files books by Jim Butcher
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Duke
Social climber
PSP
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Apr 29, 2010 - 12:42am PT
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Infinate Jest is a project, not a book.
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enjoimx
Big Wall climber
SLO Cal
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Apr 29, 2010 - 01:00am PT
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I dont know if I would recommend "Even cowgirls get the blues," as that one IS heady.
But, if you like non-fiction, "The Botany of Desire" is a very cool book with great history and it wont challenge your reality too much.
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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Apr 29, 2010 - 01:05am PT
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Damn, I guess Skip isn't goin' climbering for a while!
I would second CancerBoy's vote for Beryl Markham - a beautifully written true life inspiring read.
(I didn't want to make the list longer)
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susu
Trad climber
East Bay, CA
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Apr 29, 2010 - 03:41am PT
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I haven't read it yet but heard on NPR that "The Dirt" is a great indulgent read.
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Anastasia
Mountain climber
hanging from a crimp and crying for my mama.
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Apr 29, 2010 - 03:52am PT
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This one blew my mind and I think the artist in you will love it.
Dr. Seuss Went to War:
A Catalog of Political Cartoons
by Dr. Seuss
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Well before Sam ever considered eating green eggs and ham or Horton heard a who, Dr. Seuss was drawing biting cartoons for adults that expressed his fierce opposition to anti-Semitism and fascism. An editorial cartoonist from 1941 to 1943 for PM magazine, a left-wing daily New York newspaper, Dr. Seuss launched a battle against dictatorial rule abroad and America First (an isolationist organization that argued against U.S. entry into World War II) with more than 400 cartoons urging the United States to fight against Adolf Hitler and his cohorts in fascism, Benito Mussolini, Pierre Laval, and Japan (he never depicted General Tojo Hideki, the wartime prime minister, or Togo Shigenori, the foreign minister). Dr. Seuss Goes to War, by Richard H. Minear, includes 200 of these cartoons, demonstrating the active role Dr. Seuss played in shaping and reflecting how America responded to World War II as events unfolded.
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goatboy smellz
climber
Nederland
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Apr 29, 2010 - 03:59am PT
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The Braille version of the Karma Sutra, I’ve heard it improves finger strength, YMMV.
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Charlie D.
Trad climber
Western Slope, Tahoe Sierra
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Apr 29, 2010 - 08:52am PT
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They've been suggested, a must read.....
The Angle of Repose
A Soldier of the Great War
The Brothers K (don't let the baseball scare you off, if you came of age in the 60's you'll love it)
All full life epic tales, here's some more......
The Poison Wood Bible
The Joy Luck Club
Animal Dreams
I typically don't read murder mysteries but I just finished, "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo" and loved it enough to get his second, "The Girl who played with Fire".
Enjoy!
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kc
Trad climber
lg, ca
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Apr 29, 2010 - 10:09am PT
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Perfect books for you! The Outlander series by Diane Gabaldon. Historical fiction with a little bit of sc-fi thrown in for good measure.
One of the best books I've ever read, however, is Shantaram, by Gregory Roberts.
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Delhi Dog
Trad climber
Good Question...
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Apr 29, 2010 - 11:02am PT
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"One of the best books I've ever read, however, is Shantaram, by Gregory Roberts."
Ya that's a good one!
Not entirely true but good enough for anyone's imagination.
Epic novels...
Can go wrong with any of Clavell's
Also a great story teller is Wilbur Smith.
Pillars of the Earth
World Without End
by Ken Follett...
are fun reads if you like Historical Fiction with a twist and the early M. Ages
However,
Games Climbers Play is probably one of my all time favorites..
Edited by Ken Wilson...bonus is the climbing content.
Okay one last author...
I have enjoyed just about all of Jeff Shaara's works.
http://www.jeffshaara.com/
Happy Reading,
DD
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cliffhanger
Trad climber
California
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Apr 29, 2010 - 05:18pm PT
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Two Years Before the Mast
A very good true story about the days of sail.
After running across yet another reference to HP Lovecraft in the Bloop thread I've decided to finally read some of his work. From the Bloop thread:
"The Call of Cthulhu". "Then, driven ahead by curiosity in their captured yacht under Johansen's command, the men sight a great stone pillar sticking out of the sea, and in S. Latitude 47°9', W. Longitude l23°43', come upon a coastline of mingled mud, ooze, and weedy Cyclopean masonry which can be nothing less than the tangible substance of earth's supreme terror - the nightmare corpse-city of R'lyeh, that was built in measureless aeons behind history by the vast, loathsome shapes that seeped down from the dark stars."
http://www.supertopo.com/climbers-forum/1155020/Monsterous-deep-sea-noises-The-Bloop
Online text of Lovecraft's works:
http://www.dagonbytes.com/thelibrary/lovecraft/thecallofcthulhu.htm
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habitat
climber
grass pass
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Apr 29, 2010 - 06:16pm PT
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Another vote for "The Art of Racing in the Rain" by Garth Stein.
Philosophy, adrenaline, and testosterone, doggie style -- loved it.
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BlueGuy84
climber
San Luis Obispo, CA
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Apr 29, 2010 - 06:18pm PT
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The Wild Trees
The Search For the Lost City of Z
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d-know
Trad climber
electric lady land
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anything by h.p. lovecraft or
algernon blackwood.
and the ass saw the angel - nick cave
johnny got his gun - dalton trumbo
100 years of solitude - gabriel garcia marquez
food of the gods - terence mckenna
some excellent suggestions
from this here thread!
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