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kuan
Sport climber
CA
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Topic Author's Reply - Nov 10, 2006 - 05:53pm PT
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I'm probably not smart enough either.
Just got V., by Thomas Pynchon. Good timing, because tomorrow's supposed to be a rainy day...
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Omot
Trad climber
The here and now
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Nov 10, 2006 - 06:25pm PT
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Nice list! I love little books with big ideas. Nice to see Richard Bach's Illusions on there. Not widely known but a great read. Other's like that:
The Education of Little Tree
The Little Prince
Flatland
My all-time favorite beat book: Dharma Bums
Enjoy,
Tomo
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Jello
Social climber
No Ut
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Nov 10, 2006 - 08:04pm PT
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I belong to a men's book club. All our wives and significant others belong to a women's book club. They laughed at our idea, saying sports, politics and women would be the only things we'd actually discuss. Not so! We meet quarterly, and just had our third get-together a couple of weeks ago. The first two books were The River Why, and A River Runs Through It. At the last meeting we discussed a fascinating book that I had recommended, titled E=MC2: the biography of the world's most famous equation. In January I'll host the event. The featured book will be Harrer's The White Spider, about the early climbs of the Eigerwand. It was recommended by another member of the group, which is made up of non-climbers. It's an incredible group of doctors, lawyers, judges, entrepreneurs, a former Utah state poet laureate, a former dirtbag (me) and so on. We eat, drink and dig into the books for hours, rarely straying OT into sports, etc. We all agree it's a total gas. The wives and SO's are astounded, and admit that many times they scarcely talk about (or even read) the subject book. I think a SuperTaco Book Club is a great idea. Co-ed, of course!
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Jello
Social climber
No Ut
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Nov 10, 2006 - 08:09pm PT
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Black Elk Speaks, by Black Elk
Sometimes A Great Notion, by Ken Kesey
The Blood Oranges, by John Hawkes
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kuan
Sport climber
CA
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Topic Author's Reply - Nov 10, 2006 - 08:30pm PT
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Well, than somebody suggest a book, already!
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stevep
Boulder climber
Salt Lake, UT
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Nov 10, 2006 - 08:41pm PT
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How about The Looming Tower: Al-Qaeda and the Road to 9/11
Or maybe, given the discourse already on this site, we should stay away from politics.
I noticed that while Ursula LeGuin is mentioned, nobody mentioned what I think is her best work:
The Disposessed
The Left Hand of Darkness
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Ouch!
climber
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Nov 10, 2006 - 09:08pm PT
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The Source... by Michener
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Crimpergirl
Social climber
St. Louis
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Nov 11, 2006 - 11:43am PT
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I completed the Teachings of Don Juan this morning. Very good. I feel sort of buzzed just from reading it.
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Toker Villain
Big Wall climber
Toquerville, Utah
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Nov 11, 2006 - 12:11pm PT
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I think he was more than a little buzzed when he wrote it.
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Jaybro
Social climber
The West
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Nov 11, 2006 - 12:25pm PT
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that first book or the series?
Those books changed the Way I speak with crows forever.
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MisterE
Trad climber
Bellingham, WA
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Nov 11, 2006 - 12:27pm PT
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"Gaviotas: A Village to Reinvent The World" Alan Weisman
"Cochise: The Life and Times of the Great Apache Chief" Peter Aleshire
"The I Ching" Wilhelm/Baynes
"The Road Less Travelled" M Scott Peck.
Thanks for all of the recommendations, I now have my winter reading list!
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Crimpergirl
Social climber
St. Louis
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Nov 11, 2006 - 12:37pm PT
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I just completed the first of the Castenada books. I have the others piled up ready to go.
And so true about talking/dealing with Crows. And Lizards. And coyotes.
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creetur
climber
CA
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Nov 11, 2006 - 01:50pm PT
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how about for a book club book,
jonathan strange and mr. norrel
(which i probably spelled wrong).
it is long, but supposed to be GREAT, about magic and weirdos and whatnot, very dickensian, and rumor has it they'll eventually make it a movie.
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Toker Villain
Big Wall climber
Toquerville, Utah
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Nov 11, 2006 - 02:06pm PT
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I just talked to a lizard a half hour ago;
"You keep stinking up the house and its no more liver!"
Forget all these others. If you want a fascinating read about the bloodiest mutiny in history nearly 500 years ago, and an epic tale of survival (not to mention a possible explanation for lighter skinned aborigines in western Australia) then pick up;
Batavia's Graveyard by Mike Dash
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jbaker
Trad climber
Redwood City, CA
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Nov 11, 2006 - 06:07pm PT
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Yeah, I can't wait for the new Pynchon. Vineland doesn't get as much attention as V or Gravity's Rainbow but is a lot of fun.
There are lots of great books on the list. A few other favorites:
Cider with Rosie, Laurie Lee
Captain Sir Richard Francis Burton, by Edward Rice
Photography and the Art of Seeing, Freeman Patterson
Guns, Germs, and Steel, Jared Diamond
Moral Politics, George Lakoff
Development as Freedom, Amartya Sen
Two Years Before the Mast, Richard Henry Dana
Anything by Haruki Murakami
What Price the Moral High Ground? Robert Frank
Wings of Madness: Alberto Santos-Dumont and the Invention of Flight
War is a Force that Gives us Meaning
Smart Mobs
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phoolish
Boulder climber
Athens, Ga.
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Nov 11, 2006 - 07:13pm PT
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You Pynchon fans should have a go at William Gaddis' The Recognitions. It's pre-Pynchon, from 1955, and it prefigures a lot of the stylistic elements of Gravity's Rainbow.
The first chapter also has what is probably the funniest singe sentence in english-language literature. I'll leave it to you to find it, though.
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Toker Villain
Big Wall climber
Toquerville, Utah
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Nov 11, 2006 - 11:46pm PT
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Well JB I'll have to admit that Rice's definitive bio of Burton is a worthy second.
The guy was the archetype 19th century adventurer. Even came through here in Utah during a pivotal time. Spoke 26 languages, the first infidel to touch the black stone.
I like the way Rice dealt with Burton's endorsement of polygamy against his wife's values.
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bluering
Trad climber
Santa Clara, Ca.
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Nov 11, 2006 - 11:52pm PT
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Jeff Baker is that you??? Euphonix???
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jbaker
Trad climber
Redwood City, CA
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Nov 12, 2006 - 06:36am PT
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Sorry, bluering. Joe Baker, not Jeff.
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