Page 4 of 18 FirstFirst ... 2345614 ... LastLast
Results 31 to 40 of 174

Thread: What are you reading 2017?

  1. #31
    Senior Member
    Join Date
    Dec 2010
    Posts
    5,037
    Quote Originally Posted by TVRodriguez View Post
    Recently finished:
    Hillbilly Elegy, by J.D. Vance
    Rich Dad Poor Dad

    Currently reading:
    Sapiens, a Brief History of Humakind, by Yuval Noah Harari
    "How to" bundle of books (How to Sit, How to Eat, How to Love, How to Walk, How to Relax), by Thich Nhat Hanh

    Also reading Hop on Pop with my youngest.
    So, which did you like?

  2. #32
    Senior Member
    Join Date
    Jan 2011
    Location
    Miami, FL
    Posts
    348
    Quote Originally Posted by Rogar View Post
    TVR, "Sapiens" was one of the better books I read last year. It's a little speculative I thought, but thought provoking. I have wondered since how much of my behavior or of social behavior in general is programmed into our genetics and how much is truly free will.

    Glad to see your positive review. It's been very thought provoking so far. I'm still in the beginning. I do find it hopeful to see how resourceful adaptable our species has been over time, since we'll need that resourcefulness and adaptability as we continue to head straight on towards a warmer planet with less fresh water.

    I heard the author on npr, and I was taken in by his statement that homo sapiens survived in part due to our ability to believe incredible fictions on a mass scale, such as paper money, human rights, and religion. I put my name on the library wait list that day.

    Random observation on the hardcover binding: It's a very heavy book--not too thick but dense. I find that I need to place it on a table or hold it with two hands to read it! I think the paper is quite thick.

  3. #33
    Senior Member catherine's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2011
    Location
    Vermont
    Posts
    14,637
    Reading The Unsettlers: In Search of the Good Life in Today's America by Mark Sundeen.

    He's a really good writer: I've also read and enjoyed his book The Man Who Quit Money--about Daniel Suelo.
    "Do any human beings ever realize life while they live it--every, every minute?" Emily Webb, Our Town
    www.silententry.wordpress.com

  4. #34
    Senior Member
    Join Date
    Jan 2011
    Location
    Miami, FL
    Posts
    348
    Quote Originally Posted by frugal-one View Post
    So, which did you like?
    All of them!

    Hillbilly Elegy gave me a window into a life quite unlike my own and made me feel grateful for the opportunities I have had from the outset.

    Rich Dad Poor Dad was one I actively avoided for years b/c I found the author too smug and sometimes simply incorrect on some things he'd said publicly, but I received it as a gift for Christmas from another lawyer I know. Figured since he took the time to send it, I'd take the time to read it. Quick read, nothing very new since the book's so old, but still interesting to finally read it.

    Sapiens is a very easy read, for all its density.

    The How To books are lovely mindfulness training in bite size portions--really helpful to read a few pages here and there, especially when feeling frazzled.

    And Hop on Pop is a classic! "Three fish in a tree? How can that be?" "Ask me tomorrow but not today!"

    Oh, and I read Designing Your Life over the holidays. Some good ideas on how to break out of a rut or move into a new path in life if you've been moving in one direction so long you're not sure why anymore. Or how to start on a path if you're younger with little experience one way or another.

  5. #35
    Senior Member
    Join Date
    Jan 2011
    Posts
    5,478
    I am reading one of the most peculiar and fascinating books I've read in a while - Being a Beast by Charles Foster. The author describes in extremely graphic details how he tries to become animals (one chapter per beast) by delving into their very beings and way of life. It makes me realize how they are bonded to the earth and true to their instincts (unlike most humans now). When I read passages to DH, he asks me if the author is on LSD, but I get what he is trying to convey.

  6. #36
    Senior Member
    Join Date
    Aug 2016
    Posts
    7,454
    I will have to look at this. Lately I feel like my dog and I are becoming a lot more the same--she has learned to spell b-a-t-h, for example, and terriers are not known for their brilliance. Similarly, I admire her insistence on spending most of her life in bed.

  7. #37
    Senior Member pony mom's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2011
    Location
    NW NJ
    Posts
    1,292
    I just read a sweet little novel called My Mrs. Brown by William Norwich. A nice story about a frugal older lady who decides she wants to travel to NYC for a designer dress. Even my mom is enjoying it, and she never reads books.

  8. #38
    Yppej
    Guest
    Siddharta's Brain by James Kingsland, Kindfulness by Ajahn Brahm, The Other Slavery by Andres Resendez, City of Dreams by Tyler Anbinder and a few lesser lights that I may not finish.

  9. #39
    Senior Member
    Join Date
    Jun 2015
    Location
    upstate NY
    Posts
    2,758
    I want to read Hillbilly Elegy. I'm reading Illusion of Justice: inside Making a Murderer and America's Broken system. It is written by one of the defense attorneys and if you liked Making a Murderer, you'll probably like this. More than half the book is about the failings of the legal system and it's an interesting, thought provoking read.

    my friend's wrote a book about mindfulness but it turns out to be about how to channel spirits and I'm not into that. I'm trying diligently to get through it. He has some good exercises for meditation that actually helped me, I am the world's worst meditator.

  10. #40
    Senior Member
    Join Date
    Aug 2016
    Posts
    7,454
    Was that hard on your relative, Lainey? I was on a traffic accident liability jury and I hated it--another juror and I were so glad not to be on a murder case.

Thread Information

Users Browsing this Thread

There are currently 1 users browsing this thread. (0 members and 1 guests)

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •