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Books that every intelligent adult should read?

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Some books I've pleasure read lately and have enjoyed:

The Dirk Gently series ("Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Angency" & "The Long Dark Teatime of the Soul") by Douglas Adams
The Space Trilogy ("Out of the Silent Planet", "Perelandra", & "That Hideous Strength") by C.S. Lewis
"Atlas Shrugged" or "Anthem" by Ayn Rand
"A Prayer for Owen Meany" by John Irving
"The Time Machine" by HG Wells
"Brave New World" by Aldous Huxley
"The Silmarillion" by JRR Tolkien


Not really heavy reading any of it, but certainly enjoyable.
 
Originally posted by: Ornery
Originally posted by: 0roo0roo
Lies and the Lying Liars Who Tell Them: A Fair and Balanced Look at the Right
Click to expand...
Losing bin Laden: How Bill Clinton's Failures Unleashed Global Terror
  • PROOF: President Clinton received multiple offers from Arabs to hand over Osama bin Laden -- but turned them down!

    PLUS: the complete inside story of Clinton's shocking failure to protect America against terrorist attacks
Click to expand...


Not to rain on your parade, but if you look at it that way Reagan has more to blame than any other US president in contributing to Bin Laden's 'rise to power' as it were. Hindsight being what it is, niether were very wise decisions and the blame can't be distributed in such a clean partisan manner. 🙂
 
Probably the best book in the house: The Bible
Click to expand...

A great suggestion, actually. It's one of the most influential, important books ever written, and it bears reading cover to cover, especially if you're not religious.

This is a great thread - some great suggestions. I'm going to go find a bunch of these that I've never read and get going.
 
Sadly the only "smart" books I've read were those force fed to me, kicking and screaming, in school. I am always reading something now, although I don't generally spend more than a couple of hours a week reading. Also, everything I read is written like a movie - Tom Clancy, Michael Crichton, etc. I think it wouldn't be a stretch for me to claim that all of my english classes actually instilled in me a dislike for "quality literature". Fvck you, Dr. Chapman, you pompous cow.

Oh yeah, and just because something was written 125 years ago and known the world over by resentful school children doesn't mean it's great literature. It means it's goddamned boring, more than likely.
 
I'm bumping this thread even though I don't think it needs it - you guys are coming out of the woodwork with some excellent picks! I emailed my bud the english teacher and she said that she's flattered that I asked her and would send me a list on sunday... I'll post that list here as well.. Looks like I'll be moving into the library tomorrow- gonna be a long (and worthwhile) day 😉

P.S. Any great play recommendations (written that is)... I'll re-read the Shakespeare plays but any modern writers worth looking into? I've heard great things about Sam Shepard and personally love David Mamet... I don't want to side track the thread, but any other play writes to look out for?
 
Originally posted by: BatmanNate
Originally posted by: Ornery
So, the book you'd like to suggest reading is?
Click to expand...

If you're addressing me, my suggestions were in the post above my previous one.
Click to expand...
BatmanNate will post the books relevant to Reagan letting terrorist leaders run around unmolested. Here's another book to check out:

Why America Slept: the Failure to Prevent 9/11 - by Gerald Posner
  • Best-selling author Gerald Posner says much of the blame for 9/11 and the U.S. government?s negligence falls squarely on the shoulders of Bill Clinton and his administration.
    In a stunning revelation made in his just released ?Why America Slept: the Failure to Prevent 9/11? ? Posner asserts the disaster of Sept. 11 could have been prevented and that President Clinton passed on more than one opportunity to arrest or kill Osama bin Laden...
 
Originally posted by: Ornery
Originally posted by: BatmanNate
Originally posted by: Ornery
So, the book you'd like to suggest reading is?
Click to expand...

If you're addressing me, my suggestions were in the post above my previous one.
Click to expand...
BatmanNate will post the books relevant to Reagan letting terrorist leaders run around unmolested. Here's another book to check out:

Why America Slept: the Failure to Prevent 9/11 - by Gerald Posner
  • Best-selling author Gerald Posner says much of the blame for 9/11 and the U.S. government?s negligence falls squarely on the shoulders of Bill Clinton and his administration.
    In a stunning revelation made in his just released ?Why America Slept: the Failure to Prevent 9/11? ? Posner asserts the disaster of Sept. 11 could have been prevented and that President Clinton passed on more than one opportunity to arrest or kill Osama bin Laden...
Click to expand...

DUDES, this is not a political debate thread.. PLEASE stay on topic... I mean no offense to ANYONE but while these political theory books may be interesting reads, I don't think they can be considered "classics.".. Let's stop ON TOPIC.. Thanks 😉
 
Originally posted by: Ornery
Originally posted by: BatmanNate
Originally posted by: Ornery
So, the book you'd like to suggest reading is?
Click to expand...

If you're addressing me, my suggestions were in the post above my previous one.
Click to expand...
BatmanNate will post the books relevent to Reagan letting terrorist leaders run around unmolested. Here's another book to check out:

Why America Slept: the Failure to Prevent 9/11 - by Gerald Posner
  • Best-selling author Gerald Posner says much of the blame for 9/11 and the U.S. government?s negligence falls squarely on the shoulders of Bill Clinton and his administration.
    In a stunning revelation made in his just released ?Why America Slept: the Failure to Prevent 9/11? ? Posner asserts the disaster of Sept. 11 could have been prevented and that President Clinton passed on more than one opportunity to arrest or kill Osama bin Laden...
Click to expand...


I edited my above post to reflect a source of information (complete with Bibliography if you cared to read to the end) on the Reagan administration's covert military aid to the Mujahideen although it is common public knowledge. I'm not disputing your information regarding President Clinton, I'm merely reflecting that this is not so much a partisan matter as you would have it seem.
 
Originally posted by: Ornery
  • Atlas Shrugged - By Ayn Rand


    • The Most Influential and Controversial Work of the 20th Century

      Atlas Shrugged is the "second most influential book for Americans today" after the Bible, according to a joint survey conducted by the Library of Congress and the Book of the Month Club. One of the most acclaimed and influential works of the 20th century, Atlas Shrugged portrays the murder and rebirth of the human spirit.
Click to expand...

I just finished reading this book and the overwhelming feeling I get from it is that she turned a paragraph of what she wanted to say into a 1000 page book. I really enjoyed A Brief History of Time as someone earlier mentioned.
 
Originally posted by: sciencetoy
Probably the best book in the house: The Bible
Click to expand...

A great suggestion, actually. It's one of the most influential, important books ever written, and it bears reading cover to cover, especially if you're not religious.

This is a great thread - some great suggestions. I'm going to go find a bunch of these that I've never read and get going.
Click to expand...
Agreed, that's why I mentioned the Bible. You may NOT agree with it - however, muct of Western civizilation and many authors are better understood IF you know the Bible.

Also Shakespeare and Dante are REQUIRED to really understand many modern films and movies (on which they are based). ;

 
Originally posted by: freedomsbeat212
I'm bumping this thread even though I don't think it needs it - you guys are coming out of the woodwork with some excellent picks! I emailed my bud the english teacher and she said that she's flattered that I asked her and would send me a list on sunday... I'll post that list here as well.. Looks like I'll be moving into the library tomorrow- gonna be a long (and worthwhile) day 😉

P.S. Any great play recommendations (written that is)... I'll re-read the Shakespeare plays but any modern writers worth looking into? I've heard great things about Sam Shepard and personally love David Mamet... I don't want to side track the thread, but any other play writes to look out for?
Click to expand...

Samual Beckett from my original list is a playwrite (and novelist). Absurdist plays so be prepared.

Sam Shepard is a good modern playwrite already mentioned. As is Tom Stoppard and Eugene O'neil.
 
A few I haven't seen yet (sorry if they've been mentioned):

The Source - James Michener
Man's Search for Meaning - Victor Frankl
The Sound and the Fury - William Faulkner
The Monkey Wrench Gang - Edward Abbey
 
I personally found Cannery Row to be good, also liked Black Boy and Farewell to Arms.

The thing with classics is that you can read them as a story book or with a deeper meaning. Unless you actually go looking for deeper meanings and connections it would be pointless to read classics, you'll still be lost and clueless at these social gatherings.
 
Originally posted by: BatmanNate
Originally posted by: Ornery
Originally posted by: 0roo0roo
Lies and the Lying Liars Who Tell Them: A Fair and Balanced Look at the Right
Click to expand...
Losing bin Laden: How Bill Clinton's Failures Unleashed Global Terror
  • PROOF: President Clinton received multiple offers from Arabs to hand over Osama bin Laden -- but turned them down!

    PLUS: the complete inside story of Clinton's shocking failure to protect America against terrorist attacks
Click to expand...


Not to rain on your parade, but if you look at it that way Reagan has more to blame than any other US president in contributing to Bin Laden's 'rise to power' as it were. Hindsight being what it is, niether were very wise decisions and the blame can't be distributed in such a clean partisan manner. 🙂
Click to expand...

and not to rain on his parade again, theres no proof. conservative writers have a tendency to lie. the offers from arabs her refers to were found to be false by the nsa and cia. too bad. but its not unussual for conservative trash writers. can you write a book with nothing but lies? look at ann coulter for a prime example😛

anyways, go read the franken book, the shocking failure to protect against terrorism is on bush not clinton. clinton did everything he could to give the next administration more then a running start on the issue but bush would have nothing of it. missle defence, tax cuts, and 40% of his time on vacations was his prime goal for the first 7 months. all that lying about how screwed up everything was just that.. a lie. that or he was completely incompetent, asleep at the wheel.


anyways i found this book facinating.

Sex, Time and Power: How Women's Sexuality Shaped Human Evolution


Blinded by the Right: The Conscience of an Ex-Conservative

he admits that he supported by large conservative foundations made up stories out of whole cloth against clinton and others. its the conservative way. eventually he couldn't live with the lying for money.

also a good read, esp for ornery.
 
IMO, Michael Crichton is an excellent science fiction author. Some of his better works are Jurrasic Park, The Andromeda Strain, and The Great Train Robbery. They're all great reads.
 
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