Booman Tribune ~ A Progressive Community

So Many Books, So Little Time...

by pastordan
Wed Apr 13th, 2005 at 07:22:13 PM EST

For your amusement. PD

Apparently musing85 thinks I'm worthy of gassing on about books, because he's nominated me to keep a meme alive. I'll try to answer the questions as best I'm able:

You're stuck inside Fahrenheit 451, which book do you want to be?

Fahrenheit 451

I'm going to go with Tropic of Capricorn, or really any Henry Miller novel. I've got something of a potty mouth; might as well put it to good use.

Have you ever had a crush on a fictional character?

Sigh.

The last book you bought is?

Cat's Cradle

The Complete Tintin Companion is a marvelous work that takes you through Herge's comic book tours-de-force one by one, explaining their background and their revisions over the years. Fascinating stuff, and a must-have for any serious comic addict like myself.

Claudius the God is the second half of Robert Graves' I, Claudius. For some intangible reason, it falls flat, not quite reaching the peaks of the first part of the story. But I'll dare anyone who read that first novel to hold back from wanting to know the rest of the story. Poor Claudius.

What are you currently reading?

not

What I'm actually reading: Jughead Double Digest.

Is there a problem?

Five books you would take to a deserted island?

I'll go with Musing and take my breviary. Mine's only two volumes to his four, so I'll cheat a little and throw in a missal for good luck.
Krazy Kat: The Art of George Herriman. Because if you're going to get stuck on a desert island, you might as well have the company of a saint and a genius, all rolled into one.
The Brothers Karamazov. Ditto.
Good and Evil by Martin Buber. It's a short book, actually a collection of his essays, but I could read it again and again. It'd probably take me from here to eternity to feel like I had a handle on what Buber's talking about, and from eternity on to exhaust all its possibilities.
More cheating: the collected works of Will Cuppy: How To Be A Hermit, How to Tell Your Friends From The Hairy Apes, How To Attract The Wombat, The Decline And Fall Of Practically Everybody, and others. You gotta have a larf on a desert island, and Cuppy's a stone genius. Or did you feel like doing voluminous research for a short, humorous essay on bees?
I didn't think so.

Who are you going to pass this stick to (3 persons) and why?

I don't know. My friends are all hairy apes. I'll get back to you on that one.

So Many Books, So Little Time... | 15 comments (15 topical, 0 editorial, 0 hidden)

Deja Vue, haven't we been here before? (4.00 / 3)

You're stuck inside Fahrenheit 451, which book do you want to be?

A Confederacy of Dunces, because it is so funny

Have you ever had a crush on a fictional character?

No, but there are lots that I would like to invite to supper

The last book you bought is?

The Encyclopedia of Roses. (title approximate)

What are you currently reading?

Nothing. I have a "to-read" stack waiting for the right combination of free time, weather, and snacks on hand.

Five books you would take to a deserted island?

Confederacy of Dunces
Midnight's Children
The God of Small Things
The Collected Works of Edgar Allen Poe
The Dream of the Red Chamber

one man's conspiracy is another man's business plan
Blog updated as needed

by DuctapeFatwa (DuctapeFatwa@yahoo.com) on Wed Apr 13th, 2005 at 07:55:48 PM EST

Re: So Many Books, So Little Time... (4.00 / 2)

You're stuck inside Fahrenheit 451, which book do you want to be?
-Pride and Prejudice, Jane Austen

Have you ever had a crush on a fictional character?
-Darcy - in Pride and Prejudice

The last book you bought is?
-Too many to list: we went to the Friends of the Library book sale and came home with about 40 of them! :-)

What are you currently reading?

-"Blowout" Catherine Coulter trashy novel about serial killer - could be Freudian??
-A couple of history books on U.S. revolutionary period economics.

Five books you would take to a deserted island? Jeez this is really tough!

-Pride and Prejudice
-Collected Short Stories by O'Henry
-Tennysons Poems
-Collected Essays of Ralph Waldo Emerson
-The Prophet by Kahlil Gibran

by SallyCat on Wed Apr 13th, 2005 at 09:30:50 PM EST

Re: So Many Books, So Little Time... (4.00 / 3)

I love book threads.

Stuck inside Fahrenheit 451

Oh boy. If I was stuck in that universe I'd go crazy. But if I had to choose one book to pass down to posterity I would, if I could, pick The Lord of the Rings by Tolkien.

Crush on a Fictional Character

There are several fictional characters I would like to meet to have a conversation but a 'crush?' No.

The last book I bought

How can anyone walk out of a bookstore with only one book? Is that possible? I know I've never been able to do it.

So the last books I bought were:

Elementary Logic by Mates, Introduction to Logic by Suppes, Mathematical Logic by Quine, Intro to Logic by Suppes, Mathematical Introduction to Logic by Enderton, Logic Machines & Diagrams by Gardner (it was a used bookstore and I 'scored' their entire mathematical logic offering - hee, hee, hee ... they're Mine! All Mine! Bahwahhahahaha!!!), Nausea by Sarte (my current copy exploded when the binding disintregrated and all the pages fell out), the Philharmonia score of Die Dreigroschenoper (Three Penny Opera) by Brecht & Hauptmann with music by Kurt Weil, and Letters from England by Voltaire.

No new fiction surprisingly enough.

Current Reading

Oh Lord. This is going to get even worse.

Computability and Unsolvability by Davis, the Mates book, above, What is Mathematical Logic by Crossley, et. al., Intro to Logic by Tarski, The Silk Road Journey with Xuanzang by Wiggins, The Jungle of Randomness by Peterson, The Monstrous Regiment by Pratchett, Sophistic Refutation by Aristotle, Socrates: Ironist and Moral Philosopher by Vlastos, Love and Friendship by Alan Bloom, I also clawing my way through Also Sprach Zarathustra, Nietzsche, natch, in the German with dictionary in hand, and Worldly Goods, A New History of the Renaissance by Jardine.

As you might be able to tell I have no social life whatsoever ;-) and I read voraciously and in parallel.

5 Books to a Desert Island

Wolfram A New Kind of Science as I might actually finish reading the damn thing.
The Lord of the Rings just because.
Through the Looking Glass by Carroll as I always find this vastly amusing even tho' I've read it umptygazillion times.
The Bible - one of the editions that has the inter-linear text and commentaries in the margins.
A copy of the Complete Dialogues of Plato that also includes the First Book of the Republic. While I'm not a Platonist, by any means, Plato always sparks "The little grey cells."

Och nu den svenska kocken bakar en Alaskan älg jägare. Bork! Bork! Bork!

by ATinNM on Wed Apr 13th, 2005 at 09:40:54 PM EST

Re: So Many Books, So Little Time... (4.00 / 2)

You're stuck inside Fahrenheit 451, which book do you want to be?
The Master and Margarita/Mikhail Bulgakov

Have you ever had a crush on a fictional character?
Yes

The last book you bought is?
The Mysterious Flame of Queen Loana/Umberto Eco

What are you currently reading?
The Roman Cavalry: From the First to the Third Century AD/Karen R. Dixon, Pat Southern
"selected works of Schiller"

Five books you would take to a deserted island?
1,000 Places to See Before You Die (illustrated)/Patricia Schultz
Encyclopaedia Britannica vol.19
Water Distribution in Ancient Rome : The Evidence of Frontinus/Harry B. Evans
The Hidden Messages in Water/Masaru Emoto
The Complete Greek Cookbook : The Best From 3000 Years Of Greek Cooking/Theresa Karas Yianilos

...separation of church, and state which one you belong to...

by hanni on Wed Apr 13th, 2005 at 09:59:08 PM EST

Got to Ask (4.00 / 2)

Would you take Vol. 19 to have the visuals in the History of Western Art entry?

Och nu den svenska kocken bakar en Alaskan älg jägare. Bork! Bork! Bork!

by ATinNM on Wed Apr 13th, 2005 at 10:14:28 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Got to Ask (none / 1)

Bit of an added bonus to know it's there, but no - all the others in the Macropaedia I've taken time with (other than just research). Vol. 19 has sat over my desk and I just never get around to "reading" it. It's become a bit of a personal joke with me.

...separation of church, and state which one you belong to...

by hanni on Wed Apr 13th, 2005 at 10:36:17 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Hey Dan (4.00 / 3)

Ariel Sharon came for the cookies. Did he stay for the snark?

by BooMan on Wed Apr 13th, 2005 at 11:26:57 PM EST

Re: Hey Dan (none / 1)

Silly rabbit, Sharon doesn't do snark. Unless, of course, it's at the expense of the Palestinians...

I'd swear it looks like Bush is handing his good buddy a plate full of cash...

Streetprophets: where the cookies live now.

by pastordan (streetprophet at verizon dot net) on Thu Apr 14th, 2005 at 06:22:26 AM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Hey Dan (none / 1)

It's actually a plate of cookies with frosting in the image of the Israel flag.

There are some serious allegorical ramifications of this.

I'll leave it to Ductape to articulate.

by BooMan on Thu Apr 14th, 2005 at 06:30:33 AM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Hey Dan (none / 0)

I dunknow, the pix is a bit blurry to me but my first thought was a plate of condoms...then again I'm all for those bozo's practicing safe sex..to the alternative of more jenna and the other one floating around.

'Poverty is the worst form of violence'--Gandhi

by chocolate ink on Thu Apr 14th, 2005 at 07:31:00 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: So Many Books, So Little Time... (4.00 / 2)

When I have little time, I stick to poetry.

Right now,

MARIANNE MOORE: Complete Poems

JOHN ASHBERY: Where Shall I Wonder

Keep a book of poetry on your bedside table.
You might just read a poem in moments that
will change your mind.

To thine own self be true. W.S.

by sybil on Thu Apr 14th, 2005 at 08:47:22 AM EST

Oh geez (4.00 / 2)

I just saw this and I should be getting on the bus to go to my dentist's appointment this morning.

Yeah right, like I'd rather go to the dentist than blog.

You're stuck inside Fahrenheit 451, which book do you want to be?

Aesop's Fables. The reasons I'd want to tell those stories then are the reasons I want to tell those stories now. Barring that, a good anthology of children's stories, like The Twentieth Century Anthology of Children's Literature.

Have you ever had a crush on a fictional character?

Maybe at one time I thought I could be comfortable with the character Julie Kavner played on Rhoda (Valerie Harper's kid sister whose name I can't remember now). Ah, but that was just a passing thing. Really, dear.

The last book you bought is?

Don't Think Of An Elephant! Haven't finished reading it yet.

What are you currently reading?

This blog. Oh you mean books? a couple of O'Reilly books on programming in the Python language. I also have intermittently been carrying a spoken version of The Iliad with me on my MP3 player but I'm only through about the first book so far.

Part of my problem is that my eyes aren't what they used to be. I found out one possible reason for that at my most recent eye checkup and the procedure to correct it is apparently pretty simple. The doctor says "I'm not going to give you an eyeglass prescription today because you'll be seeing better after we do this." So now I have to wait until I can take some time off work and maybe I'll enjoy reading books again. In the meantime I try to make up for it by listening to audiobooks. But then I've always been a listener anyway. Radio beats TV all to heck as far as I'm concerned.

Five books you would take to a deserted island?

Mort by Terry Pratchett. Actually most anything by Terry Pratchett would do, but Mort or Small Gods are the two I recommend to others.
The Barefoot Doctor's Manual -- hey, if I'm out there by myself I probably ought to do my best to keep myself alive.
Some long book I've always meant to read but never had the time. Perhaps The Iliad or The Odyssey.
A book to be named later. I really do have to head for the bus.
and my stock answer to this question, N. Kierkegaard's The Art Of Practical Shipbuilding

I for one welcome our new Twitter overlords. @Omir55

by Omir the Storyteller (omir.the.storyteller -CAT- gmail -DOG- com) on Thu Apr 14th, 2005 at 08:59:24 AM EST

Your turn. (none / 1)

Answer the questions, then go tell Booman which position(s) you've played.

Outfield, mostly.

Damn.

Streetprophets: where the cookies live now.

by pastordan (streetprophet at verizon dot net) on Wed Apr 13th, 2005 at 07:23:57 PM EST

Outfield is fun (none / 1)

I love catching fly balls. I'll go catch 'em right now, ya gotta bat?

If I had to BE a book, I would be Catcher in the Rye, because I wanna be young again.

Everyone wants to take The Brothers Karamozov on the isle, but I'll take The Idiot instead. Yeah, it's shorter, but I have a crush on Nastasia Filipovna and it ain't going away.

I suppose I'd take Gibbons (Roman Empire), Thucydides (Peloponnesian war), Wallace's Infinite Jest, and When Jesus Became God by Rubenstein.

And I'd take a outfielder's glove and a baseball.

by BooMan on Wed Apr 13th, 2005 at 11:00:35 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: So Many Books, So Little Time... (none / 0)

This kind of diary can be hazardous to your health as it makes you 'waste' hours reminiscing of all those lovely books you've read or want to read.

Well I believe the book I'd want to be is: Gloria Steinem, Outrageous Acts and Everyday Rebellions.

Crush on fictional character: Eve Dallas in the J.D.Robb 'In Death' series..great female detective character set about 2059.

Last book bought: Not sure but might have been Lies My Teacher Told Me by James Loewen.

Currently Reading: Starting new Eve Dallas book, Survivor In Death.

5 Books on deserted island: James Campell's 'The Power of Myth', 'When God Was a Women', 'Black Like Me', 'Earth in Balance by Al Gore and any really good legal thriller.

All this makes me want to go to the bookstore and buy lots more books. Can anyone go to a bookstore and not spend hours there?

'Poverty is the worst form of violence'--Gandhi

by chocolate ink on Thu Apr 14th, 2005 at 07:49:27 PM EST

So Many Books, So Little Time... | 15 comments (15 topical, 0 editorial, 0 hidden)

Go to: [ Booman Tribune Homepage : Top of page : Top of comments ]

. Home
. About
. Contact
. Advertise
. FAQ
. Search

Username:
Password:

. Make a new account
. Reset password

Gift Cards * New Arrivals

THE BOOKS WITH "BUZZ":
______________

The roots of the bubble and the story of Wall Street's collapse can be told no clearer — nor with as much humor — as by Michael Lewis. If you read only one book that explains the current economic crisis, make it The Big Short.
:

"The Big Short: Inside the Doomsday Machine
by Michael Lewis

Check out the new biography of Barack Obama that is getting rave reviews:

The Bridge: The Life and Rise of Barack Obama
David Remnick.
Senator Edward M. Kennedy tells his extraordinary personal story:

True Compass: A Memoir
by Edward M. Kennedy.

Read Barack Obama's vision for America:

The Audacity of Hope: Thoughts on Reclaiming the American Dream
by Barack Obama

Boran2 and maryb2004 recommend:

The Big Over Easy: A Nursery Crime
by Jasper Fforde

Must-have information for all presidents-and citizens-of the twenty-first century?

Physics for Future Presidents: The Science behind the Headlines
Richard A. Muller

rae recommends:

Dark Ages America: The Final Phase of Empire
by Morris Berman.

On BooMan’s shelf:

Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln
by Doris Kearns Goodwin

This looks interesting:

Adventure Divas
by Holly Morris

Check out
Powell's new section:
NEW FAVORITES
Selected new arrivals at 30% off

Recommended by Indianadem and ejmw:
The Conscience of a Liberal
by Paul Wellstone

From northcountry’s bookshelf:

The New Golden Age:
The Coming Revolution Against
Political Corruption and Economic Chaos by Ravi Batra

Great Deals
----- * ^ * -----

Find mystery novels by Nancy Pickard ("Kansas")

Challenging Empire: How People, Governments, and the UN Defy US Power by Phyllis Bennis (interviewed on DN!)

Featured by Keith Olbermann, New (Powell's Sale): Rogue State: A Guide to the World's Only Superpower by William Blum (whose other books merit serious consideration)

"Explosive" State of War: The Secret History of the CIA and the Bush Administration
by James Risen

The book the CIA doesn't want you to read: Jawbreaker: The Attack on Bin Laden and Al Qaeda: A Personal Account by the CIA's Key Field Commander
Larry Johnson's review

BT's all-time best seller:

PERMACULTURE:
A Designers' Manual
$79.95 * Sale: $59.95

Unequal Sisters: A Multicultural Reader in U.S. Women's History (Third Edition)

The Undercover Economist: Exposing Why the Rich Are Rich, the Poor Are Poor And Why You Can Never Buy a Decent Used Car!

The Worst Hard Time: The Untold Story of Those Who Survived the Great American Dust Bowl
by Timothy Egan

Green Press Initiative
----- * ^ * -----

Journalistas: 100 Years of the Best Writing and Reporting by Women Journalists by Eleanor Mills * NYT review

Bury Me Standing: the Gypsies & Their Journey

1491: New Revelations of the Americas before Columbus

Brokeback Mountain
by Annie Proulx
----- * ^ * -----
Check out Powell's
"At The Movies"

Imperial Ambitions: Conversations on the Post-9/11 World by Noam Chomsky (Power & Terror: Post 9-11 Talks)

The Price of Privilege:

How Parental Pressure and
Material Advantage Are Creating a Generation of
Disconnected and Unhappy Kids
by Madeline Levine

Save 35-70% on
name brand clothing,
footwear, and outdoor gear
at SierraTradingPost.com
:

We listened to PEN American Center's "State of Emergency" and found 1940s books by Curzio Malaparte only at Alibris. (Selection (MP3) excerpted from "The Skin.")

Banned Books * Are you a fan of Film Noir, Art House, Documentaries or Hong Kong Action? * Searching for a long-lost children's book or a first printing of Miles Davis' Kind of Blue on vinyl? Find it at Alibris!

:
:

Booman Tribune Homepage
admin@boomantribune.com
powered by Scoop

More blogs about Blogs at Technorati.

Technorati Profile