What are you reading now?

[SeattleUte]

I picked this up:

http://www.amazon.com/Anti-Christ-Fr...2168977&sr=1-1

It has terrific stuff like this in it:

They reduced every great event to the idiotic formula: "obedient or disobedient to God." -- They went a step further: the "will of God" (in other words some means necessary for preserving the power of the priests) had to be determined -- and to this end they had to have a "revelation." In plain language, a gigantic literary fraud had to be perpetrated, and "holy scriptures" had to be concocted -- and so, with the utmost hierarchical pomp, and days of penance and much lamentation over the long days of "sin" now ended, they were duly published.

[bigpiney]

http://books.google.com/books?id=qdY...tsec=titlepage
only 100 pages in so I am still discovering all the characters.

[Jeff Lebowski]

I just finished "The Great Bridge" by David McCullough. It was fabulous. He is such a gifted storyteller; I wish he could live another 30 years and keep writing.

I am now reading "Blood and Thunder" by Hampton Sides:

http://www.amazon.com/Blood-Thunder-...2171900&sr=8-1

I have heard lots of good buzz on this book and it is excellent so far.

[woot]

By necessity: Primate Adaptation and Evolution, 2nd ed. John G. Fleagle.

For fun: A Game of Thrones, George R. R. Martin.

The former is actually pretty awesome, as far as that sort of thing goes, while the latter is my first attempt in several years to read fantasy literature, which I used to enjoy doing. The writing is excellent, but I'm having a hard time staying interested.

[Solon]

Originally Posted by woot

By necessity: Primate Adaptation and Evolution, 2nd ed. John G. Fleagle.

For fun: A Game of Thrones, George R. R. Martin.

The former is actually pretty awesome, as far as that sort of thing goes, while the latter is my first attempt in several years to read fantasy literature, which I used to enjoy doing. The writing is excellent, but I'm having a hard time staying interested.

The Satanic Verses by Rushdie. It's a little odd, but I love his verbs. Plus, I'll read anything that the author risks his/her life to produce.

[woot]

Originally Posted by Solon

The Satanic Verses by Rushdie. It's a little odd, but I love his verbs. Plus, I'll read anything that the author risks his/her life to produce.

That was on my list at one time. You've reminded me to put it back on there.

[ute4ever]

To Draw Closer To God by Henry B. Eyring
It Takes a Village Idiot by Jim Mullen
The Nectar of Instruction, which was given to me by a monk at a farmer's market, and written for the International Society for Krishna Consciousness.

[Solon]

Originally Posted by woot

That was on my list at one time. You've reminded me to put it back on there.

Sorry, but I'm not going to go quid pro quo and pick up Primate Adaptation and Evolution . I did read Demonic Males by Wrangham and Peterson last year and, although they get a little preachy at the end, it's pretty interesting stuff. Their stuff is probably either too elementary or too outdated for what you do, but it clued me into how fascinating evolutionary biology can be.

[bluegoose]

Stolen Lives by Malika Oufkir. I'm reading this one on the recommendation of my wife. I'm about halfway through and it is a good read thus far.

Positively False by Floyd Landis. I haven't started this book yet, as I was planning to save it for jury duty tomorrow, which I just found out moments ago was deferred until later in the week.

[woot]

Originally Posted by Solon

Sorry, but I'm not going to go quid pro quo and pick up Primate Adaptation and Evolution . I did read Demonic Males by Wrangham and Peterson last year and, although they get a little preachy at the end, it's pretty interesting stuff. Their stuff is probably either too elementary or too outdated for what you do, but it clued me into how fascinating evolutionary biology can be.

That's a great book, but yea it's pretty wrong. A ton of great research came out of the reaction, so it is looked upon with love by many. Wrangham is incredibly smart but his role throughout much of his career has been to start new conversations rather than to produce definitive research. For instance, his latest ideas about how cooking shaped the emergence of Homo seem way off base to me, but the ongoing conversation is very interesting.