JZ Myers, the
Pharyngula blog-meister, is threatening to do
something awful to a book unless he gets linked to, so....
The latest
book meme goes like this: Last book read, latest book bought, five books that meant a lot.
My list looks like this:
The latest book I just got back from picking up:
The Rise of the Indian Rope Trick, by Peter Lamont. Had an interesting conversation with the salesgirl when I ordered it; she'd never heard the expression "Indian Rope Trick" before, and wasn't really enlightened when I described the thing. "Well, that was the nineteenth century," she said, "they believed all sorts of odd things then." I was tempted to give her a rundown of the sort of things people believe these days....
If graphic novels count, then the last book I read was
Brief Lives, by Neil Gaiman. Otherwise,
Flashman's Lady, by Ian McDonald Fraser.
Five books that meant a lot. That's a toughie. Try this semi-random assortment:
The Mismeasure of Man, by Stephen Jay Gould. It's nice to have a book that summarises the bullshit and then demolishes it.
The New Science of Strong Materials, by J.E. Gordon. Helped me relate the somewhat academic physics I'd been taught in school to stuff in the real world. Forms a useful diptych with Structures, by the same author.
Essential Kanji, by P.G. O'Neill. After a period in the doldrums, flicking through this book in odd idle minutes has started to reawaken my interest in Japanese.
Use of Weapons, by Iain M. Banks. Intelligent and literate space opera. Not recommended if you like linear narratives, though.
Red/Green/Blue Mars, by Kim Stanley Robinson. A classic trilogy. Some find the pace a bit slow, though.
More below the fold:
