Welcome to the AppalachianTrailCafe.net!
Take a moment and register and then join the conversation

What Are You Reading?

    This site uses cookies. By continuing to browse this site, you are agreeing to our Cookie Policy.

    • TrafficJam wrote:

      I'm also finishing up Lonesome Dove on audio. I've read the book but listening to it is a different experience. The narrator is awesome and gets the character's voices perfect, IMO.

      The library finally replaced the third book in The First Law trilogy so I'm reading that also. I can barely remember the characters and subtleties of their relationships so it's been hard to get into.
      I love the lonesome dove movies.

    • meat wrote:

      TrafficJam wrote:

      I'm also finishing up Lonesome Dove on audio. I've read the book but listening to it is a different experience. The narrator is awesome and gets the character's voices perfect, IMO.

      The library finally replaced the third book in The First Law trilogy so I'm reading that also. I can barely remember the characters and subtleties of their relationships so it's been hard to get into.
      I love the lonesome dove movies.
      Anyone who wouldn't cheat for a poke, doesn't want a poke very bad.
      bacon can solve most any problem.

      The post was edited 1 time, last by sheepdog ().

    • sheepdog wrote:

      meat wrote:

      TrafficJam wrote:

      I'm also finishing up Lonesome Dove on audio. I've read the book but listening to it is a different experience. The narrator is awesome and gets the character's voices perfect, IMO.

      The library finally replaced the third book in The First Law trilogy so I'm reading that also. I can barely remember the characters and subtleties of their relationships so it's been hard to get into.
      I love the lonesome dove movies.
      Anyone who wouldn't cheat for a poke, doesn't want a poke very bad. I The
      The older the fiddle, the sweeter the music.
      Lost in the right direction.

    • TrafficJam wrote:

      sheepdog wrote:

      meat wrote:

      TrafficJam wrote:

      I'm also finishing up Lonesome Dove on audio. I've read the book but listening to it is a different experience. The narrator is awesome and gets the character's voices perfect, IMO.

      The library finally replaced the third book in The First Law trilogy so I'm reading that also. I can barely remember the characters and subtleties of their relationships so it's been hard to get into.
      I love the lonesome dove movies.
      Anyone who wouldn't cheat for a poke, doesn't want a poke very bad. I The
      The older the fiddle, the sweeter the music.
      Cof124

    • I finished a lot of books in the past two months, so I will post a little about some of the ones I believe a few of you might be interested in.

      I will start with one I discusses with Socks a little on another thread. Thomas Jefferson and the Tripoli Pirates: The Forgotten Wat that Changed American History by Brian Kilmeade and Don Yaeger. Very interesting and describes how the American Navy was created, and really needed it. Our merchant ships were being captured and sailors held for ransom when trying to pass between the Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea by pirates from North Africa's Barbary coast. This went on for quite a while as Jefferson and Adams starting trying to address it when they were ambassadors to France and England and then on to their presidencies. Applies a lot to issues today. A lot of the politicians are the problem and the Marines are the real heroes. Relatively short and easy to read, and I found it very interesting.
      The road to glory cannot be followed with much baggage.
      Richard Ewell, CSA General

      The post was edited 1 time, last by Astro ().

    • The Wright Brothers by David McCullough. To me McCullough is a great writer, and this book was much shorter than most of his. Was a good mix of history, science, business, and personal character mixed together. Came away with an even greater respect for the Orville and Wilbur.
      The road to glory cannot be followed with much baggage.
      Richard Ewell, CSA General

    • Heart of a Tiger: Growing up with my Grandfather Ty Cobb by Hershel Cobb. Really came away with a totally different image of Ty Cobb. First three chapters are rough but necessary to set the stage for the rest of the book. Herschel's father (Ty's second son) was an abusive parent and then died of a heart attack at around 33, and his alcoholic pill popping mother was even worse. Only hung on to Herschel and his older sister and younger brother so Ty would keep supporting her. Fortunately the children got to spend the summers with their grandparents. While at this point Ty and his first wife were divorced they shared the children. Herschel came away with Ty Cobb being the most compassionate and caring person in his life. Ty was probably a little too rough as a father himself (although nothing like his son would be), but he had a great second act as a grandfather. Ty was a very smart businessman and compassionate person.

      Ty's biggest mistake was not firing Al Stump as his biographer when everyone knew he could not be trusted. But Ty was dying of cancer and was afraid that it was too late to find another author. The movie Cobb based upon Stump's book probably verges more on fiction than fact. An example is the image of Ty sharping his cleats to hurt other players. Reality is Ty's leg's were scarred terribly from where the defensive players would cleat him because they did not want him stealing on them. Basically Ty was very driven and not as sociable with the other players as he could have been (his father's murder by his mother probably influenced this). Instead he socialized with business men and made a lot of very wise investments (such as Coca Cola, IBM, etc.).

      Currently reading Ty's own words from his 20 years in Baseball (based upon columns he wrote himself).

      Also looking forward to reading Ty Cobb by Charles Lerhsen when I get a chance.
      The road to glory cannot be followed with much baggage.
      Richard Ewell, CSA General

    • From Silk to Silicon: The Story of Globalization through Ten Extraordinary Lives by Eric Gartner. Unique job of explaining the evolution of globalization through the lives of Genghis Khan, Prince Henry the Navigator, RobertClive, Mayer Amshel Rothchild, John D. Rockefeller, Jean Monnet, MayerAmschel Rothschild, Cyrus Field, Deng Xiaoping, Margaret Thatcher, and Andy Grove. While occasionally I felt the writers liberal bias was a distraction, overall on the balance it very interesting and informative.
      The road to glory cannot be followed with much baggage.
      Richard Ewell, CSA General

    • Astro wrote:

      I finished a lot of books in the past two months, so I will post a little about some of the ones I believe a few of you might be interested in.

      I will start with one I discusses with Socks a little on another thread. Thomas Jefferson and the Tripoli Pirates: The Forgotten Wat that Changed American History by Brian Kilmeade and Don Yaeger. Very interesting and describes how the American Navy was created, and really needed it. Our merchant ships were being captured and sailors held for ransom when trying to pass between the Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea by pirates from North Africa's Barbary coast. This went on for quite a while as Jefferson and Adams starting trying to address it when they were ambassadors to France and England and then on to their presidencies. Applies a lot to issues today. A lot of the politicians are the problem and the Marines are the real heroes. Relatively short and easy to read, and I found it very interesting.
      "To the shores of Tripoli..."

      Lest we forget.....


      SSgt Ray Rangel - USAF
      SrA Elizabeth Loncki - USAF
      PFC Adam Harris - USA
      MSgt Eden Pearl - USMC

    • Astro wrote:

      The Wright Brothers by David McCullough. To me McCullough is a great writer, and this book was much shorter than most of his. Was a good mix of history, science, business, and personal character mixed together. Came away with an even greater respect for the Orville and Wilbur.
      This is another book I wanna read at some point, saw it the other day in the bookstore and parused it briefly. if you haven't read "Mayflower" by Mc Cullough, it's another good one.

    • Hunter Killer: Inside America's Unmanned Air War by Mark McCurley and Kevin Maurer. McCurley is an Air Force Pilot who realizes the only way he will get to "see" combat again is if he switches to flying Remotely Piloted Aircraft (RPA), and what we know from the media as drones. So he makes the transition, which is a good thing as having "actual pilots" had a positive impact on the program. Was loaned to me by a retired Air Force Colonel who flew in Vietnam. While I am not a pilot, I did appreciate the story and how this technology has changed warfare today. Those with actual military experience will probably be able to appreciate it even more.

      Interesting side note, pilots have names similar to hiker trail names. His was squirrel (from secret squirrel) since he worked with an intelligence group before becoming a pilot.
      The road to glory cannot be followed with much baggage.
      Richard Ewell, CSA General

      The post was edited 1 time, last by Astro ().

    • Lawrence in Arabia: War, Deceit, Imperial Folly, and the making of the Modern Middle East by Scott Anderson. It is about the Arab Revolt against the Turks in World War I. Warning this is a fascinating and engrossing, but long book. While T.E. Lawrence (Great Brittan) is the key protagonist of the book, it also covers the German perspective from Curt Prufer, Jewish perspective from Aaron Aaronsohn, and American perspective from William Yale. I love history books that tie multiple characters together giving different perspectives, and this one excels at that. For that matter I loved the movie Hoodwinked, but that is a whole another thing. :)

      Took a break from it to watch the movie Lawrence of Arabia (3.5 hours) last night, and on p. 465 of 509 (with another 70 of notes and index), so I need to get back to it. As good as it has been I am confident it will finish well, and can recommend it to anyone interested in this type of book.
      The road to glory cannot be followed with much baggage.
      Richard Ewell, CSA General

    • Astro wrote:

      Hunter Killer: Inside America's Unmanned Air War by Mark McCurley and Kevin Maurer. McCurley is an Air Force Pilot who realizes the only way he will get to "see" combat again is if he switches to flying Remotely Piloted Aircraft (RPA), and what we know from the media as drones. So he makes the transition, which is a good thing as having "actual pilots" had a positive impact on the program. Was loaned to me by a retired Air Force Colonel who flew in Vietnam. While I am not a pilot, I did appreciate the story and how this technology has changed warfare today. Those with actual military experience will probably be able to appreciate it even more.

      Interesting side note, pilots have names similar to hiker trail names. His was squirrel (from secret squirrel) since he worked with an intelligence group before becoming a pil
      Experienced RPA operators are rapidly departing the USAF once their duty commitment is fulfilled for a variety of reasons. Promotion probability is one such reason as peers actually flying combat ops are recognized more heavily by promotion boards. Moreover once trained and experienced, there is less likelihood of such operators furthering career opportunities via participating in advanced education. As the demand for RPA missions continues exponential growth, even instructors training new operators are tasked with real world missions

      However the USAF has taken steps to allievate operator shortage as the first class of enlisted RPA operators has just commenced.

      Lest we forget.....


      SSgt Ray Rangel - USAF
      SrA Elizabeth Loncki - USAF
      PFC Adam Harris - USA
      MSgt Eden Pearl - USMC

    • Recently finished Amazing Grace: William Wilberforce and the Heroic Campaign to End Slavery by Eric Metaxas. Very good and I would highly recommend it. The author came to speak at our university last week, and he is very interesting with a great sense of humor (although you will not see much of that in this book).
      The road to glory cannot be followed with much baggage.
      Richard Ewell, CSA General

    • The Gestapo: A History of Horror, by Jacques Delarue.

      I wound up putting down the previous book I mentioned. Interesting material, sleep-inducing writing style I couldn't get out of a mental monotone when reading it. I'll pick it up again one day.
      Do your duty in all things. You cannot do more, you should never wish to do less. - Robert E. Lee

    • TrafficJam wrote:

      Sheesh, does anyone read fluff (except meat) ? :) Y'all are so serious.

      Just kidding, to each his own... :)
      My fiction is random and sporadic. Not by choice. My favorite authors aren't prolific enough. Not to mention two of the bass turds (Clancy and Flynn) had the nerve to die on me, leaving ghost (no pun intended) writers to continue their work. Seems like they're fewer and farther between. Or I'm just impatient. Something. :p
      Do your duty in all things. You cannot do more, you should never wish to do less. - Robert E. Lee

    • Grinder wrote:

      TrafficJam wrote:

      Sheesh, does anyone read fluff (except meat) ? :) Y'all are so serious.

      Just kidding, to each his own... :)
      My fiction is random and sporadic. Not by choice. My favorite authors aren't prolific enough. Not to mention two of the bass turds (Clancy and Flynn) had the nerve to die on me, leaving ghost (no pun intended) writers to continue their work. Seems like they're fewer and farther between. Or I'm just impatient. Something. :p
      Grinder, if you Like Clancy you'd probably like books by Clive Cusslertoo, particularly the Dirk Pitt adventures and the NUMA files

    • well...since we're talkin bout "fluff" i can put this here.

      here's something i thot i'd never read -- starting next season (this fall) cbs announced a new member of the 60 minutes team who will do periodic reports as a special contributor. who is this new hard hitting journalist you ask? believe it or not...its...oprah.
      2,000 miler

    • max.patch wrote:

      well...since we're talkin bout "fluff" i can put this here.

      here's something i thot i'd never read -- starting next season (this fall) cbs announced a new member of the 60 minutes team who will do periodic reports as a special contributor. who is this new hard hitting journalist you ask? believe it or not...its...oprah.
      Mmm, that's a hard pass!

    • LIhikers wrote:

      Grinder wrote:

      TrafficJam wrote:

      Sheesh, does anyone read fluff (except meat) ? :) Y'all are so serious.

      Just kidding, to each his own... :)
      My fiction is random and sporadic. Not by choice. My favorite authors aren't prolific enough. Not to mention two of the bass turds (Clancy and Flynn) had the nerve to die on me, leaving ghost (no pun intended) writers to continue their work. Seems like they're fewer and farther between. Or I'm just impatient. Something. :P
      Grinder, if you Like Clancy you'd probably like books by Clive Cusslertoo, particularly the Dirk Pitt adventures and the NUMA files
      I've read a few. Decent but they didn't jump out and grab me.
      Do your duty in all things. You cannot do more, you should never wish to do less. - Robert E. Lee

    • LIhikers wrote:

      Grinder wrote:

      TrafficJam wrote:

      Sheesh, does anyone read fluff (except meat) ? :) Y'all are so serious.

      Just kidding, to each his own... :)
      My fiction is random and sporadic. Not by choice. My favorite authors aren't prolific enough. Not to mention two of the bass turds (Clancy and Flynn) had the nerve to die on me, leaving ghost (no pun intended) writers to continue their work. Seems like they're fewer and farther between. Or I'm just impatient. Something. :P
      Grinder, if you Like Clancy you'd probably like books by Clive Cusslertoo, particularly the Dirk Pitt adventures and the NUMA files
      Tried one book of this series. Couldn't get past the first 100 pages. Clancy's books were based on technical fact which created the appeal for me.

      Lest we forget.....


      SSgt Ray Rangel - USAF
      SrA Elizabeth Loncki - USAF
      PFC Adam Harris - USA
      MSgt Eden Pearl - USMC

    • chief wrote:

      JimBlue wrote:

      Clancy was investigated several times the government was concerned about where he got his information. All he had done was extrapolate from known and public info.
      i call bs on that!
      me too!

      i also call bs on the rumor that obama had clancy assassinated.

      it's true that clancy was investigated by the government. but not because he somehow had access to confidential information. vice president dan quayle considered him as a white house consultant for the space program. the thinking was that someone like clancey in this role would pump up the public's enthusiasm for the program. so an initial screening was done in this regard.
      2,000 miler