Wednesday, June 08, 2005
Oooo – I’ve been tagged! The Ice Man has taken time out of his escapades in Las Vegas to pass the torch.
Okay here goes....
Last Five Books Read
Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis – I just started this one. When I went to see “Star Wars” a few weeks ago (which was VERY good in all it’s corny glory), I saw the trailer for this movie,. Given my love of all things related to Harry Potter (new book July 16th!) and The Lord of the Rings, I thought I might like this book. It also has a lot of religious imagery, and I like religious fiction. So far, it’s been a quick read, and a perfect escape for being cooped up with a broken foot. Technically, this book is actually a collection of a seven book series. I’m on book 3. It’s been a good distraction.
State of Fear by Michael Crichton – After I saw the movie “Jurassic Park,” I read the book and fell in LOVE with Michael Crichton’s writing. I’ve read every one of his books except Eaters of the Dead, The Great Train Robbery, The Terminal Man, and his nonfiction stuff (I hate nonfiction). About every few years, he publishes, and I’m usually one of the yahoos who rushes out and buys one of his books. I have to say I was a little disappointed with this book. Somewhere around the middle it kind of loses its direction. It starts to feel like some unorganized rant against the media. I had to force myself to finish the book.
Angels and Demons by Dan Brown – I loved Da Vinci Code, although I agree the ending wasn’t very good. But beyond the ending, which really wasn’t all that bad, I thought it was an EXCELLENT read. So I was very excited to read my second Dan Brown book. Man, can this guy totally screw up an ending. While the book was pretty good, the ending TOTALLY ruined the reading experience. It was like I suddenly descended into crazy world in the last 100 pages of this book.
The Godfather by Mario Puzo – My mother had been trying to get me to read the progenitor the of “Godfather” movie trilogy for years. So I bit the bullet and read this very gory but pretty good book. At least I know what “going to the mattresses” means. Reading this book has helped me understand boy speak just a little bit more.
Winner Take All Society by Robert H. Frank and Philip J. Cook – This is a book about how competition can lead to waste in our society. So much in our society is set up around competition. The winners of competition (whether it be winner of the Indy 500 or who gets the IB gig at Goldman Sachs) get big payoffs. The big payoffs attract more people to compete in competition. For instance, thousands of kids around the US are vying to become professional athletes. But less than 1% of them will actually make it and only a small subset of those who make it actually get paid big bucks. So for the other 99%, society would be better served if they focused their efforts elsewhere – but the tournament payoffs discourage logical reallocation of resources. We actually read an article in Managing People at Work that supports the books premise – the article said that competition is not always good in the workplace because it can be discouraging to those in second place. The book is okay. I don’t really like nonfiction (did I mention I hate it?) and when you add in the fact that this book is repetitive and the logic is somewhat flawed, this booked was doomed to make on FMG’s list of unfinished reads.
Favorite Five Books
The Eight by Katherine Neville – I love love LOVE this book! It’s got everything I love – adventure, intrigue, parallel story lines, puzzles, a love story, AND the French Revolution. It moves incredibly fast and is full of riddles. What more could a girl ask for? J’adore ce livre..
Tara Road by Maeve Binchy – Maeve Binchy is an incredible author. I’ve also read Circle of Friends and Copper Beech, which were both pretty good. The reason why Tara Road is one of my favorites is because the characters are so well developed, and I felt really involved with what happened to them throughout the book. At one point, I became so angry at one of the characters, I threw the book across the room. Whenever I’m that passionate about a book, I know it’s a damn good read. And Tara Road is a damn good read.
House of Sand and Fog by Andre Dubus III – You may have seen the movie with Jennifer Connolly and Ben Kingsley, and it’s a pretty decent movie. The book is infinite-times better. Again the characters are VERY well developed. And there’s no clear protagonist and antagonist. It’s just a book about life – and how one little thing can screw things up for you. This was another book that I threw across the room, I was so wrapped up in what was happening with the characters. And just an amazingly well written story. It’s probably my favorite book.
Sphere by Michael Crichton – Michael Crichton is my favorite author, and of all of his books, Sphere is my favorite (followed closely by Jurassic Park and Disclosure.) I guess I liked this one because it was so imaginative. As with all his books, it’s a fast read, very suspenseful, and even a little scary sometimes.
Harry Potter Series by J.K. Rowling – Technically I guess this counts as five books, and I know it’s a little juvenile, but I absolutely love the series. I’m one of the goobers who preorders the books so I can start reading the release date. And once I get the book, I read it straight for 2 days, only taking breaks to go to the bathroom and to eat occasionally. Ya, I’m a Harry Potter nerd. But at least I don’t have any Harry Potter collectibles. Well, I do have a Harry Potter Christmas ornament but that’s it I SWEAR!!! (Only 37 days til the Half Blood Prince!!)
So that’s it, I guess. And because like Wakechick, I HATE chain letters, I will spare y’all by not passing the tag. Sorry but all the vicodin and percoset has made me cranky, lazy, and uncooperative! If you feel so inclined, please tag yourself on my behalf.
Okay here goes....
Last Five Books Read
Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis – I just started this one. When I went to see “Star Wars” a few weeks ago (which was VERY good in all it’s corny glory), I saw the trailer for this movie,. Given my love of all things related to Harry Potter (new book July 16th!) and The Lord of the Rings, I thought I might like this book. It also has a lot of religious imagery, and I like religious fiction. So far, it’s been a quick read, and a perfect escape for being cooped up with a broken foot. Technically, this book is actually a collection of a seven book series. I’m on book 3. It’s been a good distraction.
State of Fear by Michael Crichton – After I saw the movie “Jurassic Park,” I read the book and fell in LOVE with Michael Crichton’s writing. I’ve read every one of his books except Eaters of the Dead, The Great Train Robbery, The Terminal Man, and his nonfiction stuff (I hate nonfiction). About every few years, he publishes, and I’m usually one of the yahoos who rushes out and buys one of his books. I have to say I was a little disappointed with this book. Somewhere around the middle it kind of loses its direction. It starts to feel like some unorganized rant against the media. I had to force myself to finish the book.
Angels and Demons by Dan Brown – I loved Da Vinci Code, although I agree the ending wasn’t very good. But beyond the ending, which really wasn’t all that bad, I thought it was an EXCELLENT read. So I was very excited to read my second Dan Brown book. Man, can this guy totally screw up an ending. While the book was pretty good, the ending TOTALLY ruined the reading experience. It was like I suddenly descended into crazy world in the last 100 pages of this book.
The Godfather by Mario Puzo – My mother had been trying to get me to read the progenitor the of “Godfather” movie trilogy for years. So I bit the bullet and read this very gory but pretty good book. At least I know what “going to the mattresses” means. Reading this book has helped me understand boy speak just a little bit more.
Winner Take All Society by Robert H. Frank and Philip J. Cook – This is a book about how competition can lead to waste in our society. So much in our society is set up around competition. The winners of competition (whether it be winner of the Indy 500 or who gets the IB gig at Goldman Sachs) get big payoffs. The big payoffs attract more people to compete in competition. For instance, thousands of kids around the US are vying to become professional athletes. But less than 1% of them will actually make it and only a small subset of those who make it actually get paid big bucks. So for the other 99%, society would be better served if they focused their efforts elsewhere – but the tournament payoffs discourage logical reallocation of resources. We actually read an article in Managing People at Work that supports the books premise – the article said that competition is not always good in the workplace because it can be discouraging to those in second place. The book is okay. I don’t really like nonfiction (did I mention I hate it?) and when you add in the fact that this book is repetitive and the logic is somewhat flawed, this booked was doomed to make on FMG’s list of unfinished reads.
Favorite Five Books
The Eight by Katherine Neville – I love love LOVE this book! It’s got everything I love – adventure, intrigue, parallel story lines, puzzles, a love story, AND the French Revolution. It moves incredibly fast and is full of riddles. What more could a girl ask for? J’adore ce livre..
Tara Road by Maeve Binchy – Maeve Binchy is an incredible author. I’ve also read Circle of Friends and Copper Beech, which were both pretty good. The reason why Tara Road is one of my favorites is because the characters are so well developed, and I felt really involved with what happened to them throughout the book. At one point, I became so angry at one of the characters, I threw the book across the room. Whenever I’m that passionate about a book, I know it’s a damn good read. And Tara Road is a damn good read.
House of Sand and Fog by Andre Dubus III – You may have seen the movie with Jennifer Connolly and Ben Kingsley, and it’s a pretty decent movie. The book is infinite-times better. Again the characters are VERY well developed. And there’s no clear protagonist and antagonist. It’s just a book about life – and how one little thing can screw things up for you. This was another book that I threw across the room, I was so wrapped up in what was happening with the characters. And just an amazingly well written story. It’s probably my favorite book.
Sphere by Michael Crichton – Michael Crichton is my favorite author, and of all of his books, Sphere is my favorite (followed closely by Jurassic Park and Disclosure.) I guess I liked this one because it was so imaginative. As with all his books, it’s a fast read, very suspenseful, and even a little scary sometimes.
Harry Potter Series by J.K. Rowling – Technically I guess this counts as five books, and I know it’s a little juvenile, but I absolutely love the series. I’m one of the goobers who preorders the books so I can start reading the release date. And once I get the book, I read it straight for 2 days, only taking breaks to go to the bathroom and to eat occasionally. Ya, I’m a Harry Potter nerd. But at least I don’t have any Harry Potter collectibles. Well, I do have a Harry Potter Christmas ornament but that’s it I SWEAR!!! (Only 37 days til the Half Blood Prince!!)
So that’s it, I guess. And because like Wakechick, I HATE chain letters, I will spare y’all by not passing the tag. Sorry but all the vicodin and percoset has made me cranky, lazy, and uncooperative! If you feel so inclined, please tag yourself on my behalf.
