Reading Material

[Alice]

I'm going on a short vacation soon, and I'm almost done with the Timetraveler's Wife.  I need a new book to read for my trip.

If you could tell me one book to read - what would it be?

[Jessie]

The Poisonwood Bible

[Beefy]

Feltch Lives

[meredith]

vonnegut

umm, pick one.

[BigDun]

Snow Crash by Neal Stephenson

[nishi]

jessie's right. or dalva, by jim harrison. or extremely loud and incredibly close, by jonathan safran foer. or the magician's assistant by ann patchett. or life of pi by yann martel. or middlesex: a novel, by jeffrey eugenides.

i've got all kinds of ideas.

[Jessie]

Oh, another good one is I Know This Much is True, by Wally Lamb.

[dc]

"The Sneetches" by Dr. Seuss, or "The Devil's Dictionary" by Ambrose Bierce

[Alice]

Also, if anyone knows any good non-fiction, I dig on that shit too.

[dc]

Also, if anyone knows any good non-fiction, I dig on that shit too.

What subjects?  That's a wide-open field.

[Alice]

Also, if anyone knows any good non-fiction, I dig on that shit too.

What subjects?  That's a wide-open field.

Anything.  I just like to absorb.

No science crap, save that for nallen.  History, people, thoughts and ideas, philosophy, religion, art, etc.

[BigDun]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/My_Pet_Goat

[dc]

Off the top of my head....

David McCullough's new book "1776" is excellent.

"The Professor and The Madman" by Simon Winchester

"Isaac's Storm" or "Devil and The White City" by Erik Larsen

[nishi]

Also, if anyone knows any good non-fiction, I dig on that shit too.

What subjects?  That's a wide-open field.

Anything.  I just like to absorb.

No science crap, save that for nallen.  History, people, thoughts and ideas, philosophy, religion, art, etc.

all souls: a family story from southie, by michael patrick macdonald
the liar's club, by mary karr
nine parts of desire: the hidden world of islamic women, by geraldine brooks
pack of two: the intricate bond between people and dogs, by caroline knapp
appetites: what women want, by caroline knapp
autobiography of a face, by lucy grealy
a dog year: twelve months, four dogs, and me, by jon katz
wasted: a memoir of anorexia and bulemia, by marya hornbacker
the heartsong of charging elk, by james welch (this is historical fiction, actually)


i got a million of 'em.

[meredith]

all souls: a family story from southie, by michael patrick macdonald
the liar's club, by mary karr
nine parts of desire: the hidden world of islamic women, by geraldine brooks
pack of two: the intricate bond between people and dogs, by caroline knapp
appetites: what women want, by caroline knapp
autobiography of a face, by lucy grealy
a dog year: twelve months, four dogs, and me, by jon katz
wasted: a memoir of anorexia and bulemia, by marya hornbacker
the heartsong of charging elk, by james welch (this is historical fiction, actually)


i got a million of 'em.

Hey... those audio recordings... are they free?  That would be a great way for me to increase my "reading" time.

[nishi]

all souls: a family story from southie, by michael patrick macdonald
the liar's club, by mary karr
nine parts of desire: the hidden world of islamic women, by geraldine brooks
pack of two: the intricate bond between people and dogs, by caroline knapp
appetites: what women want, by caroline knapp
autobiography of a face, by lucy grealy
a dog year: twelve months, four dogs, and me, by jon katz
wasted: a memoir of anorexia and bulemia, by marya hornbacker
the heartsong of charging elk, by james welch (this is historical fiction, actually)


i got a million of 'em.

Hey... those audio recordings... are they free?  That would be a great way for me to increase my "reading" time.

the ones we do *are* free.... if you're blind or physically impaired. it's not a good tradeoff, really......

[BigDun]

all souls: a family story from southie, by michael patrick macdonald
the liar's club, by mary karr
nine parts of desire: the hidden world of islamic women, by geraldine brooks
pack of two: the intricate bond between people and dogs, by caroline knapp
appetites: what women want, by caroline knapp
autobiography of a face, by lucy grealy
a dog year: twelve months, four dogs, and me, by jon katz
wasted: a memoir of anorexia and bulemia, by marya hornbacker
the heartsong of charging elk, by james welch (this is historical fiction, actually)


i got a million of 'em.

Hey... those audio recordings... are they free?  That would be a great way for me to increase my "reading" time.

the ones we do *are* free.... if you're blind or physically impaired. it's not a good tradeoff, really......

Does having multiple nipples count as being physically impaired?

[ignom]

This

[nishi]

all souls: a family story from southie, by michael patrick macdonald
the liar's club, by mary karr
nine parts of desire: the hidden world of islamic women, by geraldine brooks
pack of two: the intricate bond between people and dogs, by caroline knapp
appetites: what women want, by caroline knapp
autobiography of a face, by lucy grealy
a dog year: twelve months, four dogs, and me, by jon katz
wasted: a memoir of anorexia and bulemia, by marya hornbacker
the heartsong of charging elk, by james welch (this is historical fiction, actually)


i got a million of 'em.

Hey... those audio recordings... are they free?  That would be a great way for me to increase my "reading" time.

the ones we do *are* free.... if you're blind or physically impaired. it's not a good tradeoff, really......

Does having multiple nipples count as being physically impaired?

only if your physician thinks it impairs your ability to read print. so... i guess it depends on your doctor.

hey - listen. any of you with aging parents or grandparents - anyone with much of any loss of vision at all is eligible for our stuff. sign them up.. and then have the books delivered to your house!

[ignom]

I'm nearsighted. That implies some loss of vision.

[Gamplayerx]

My mom just told me yesterday that my grandmother can hardly see anymore.  But I think "Star" would be a bit too racy for her.

[cnamon]

My mom just told me yesterday that my grandmother can hardly see anymore.  But I think "Star" would be a bit too racy for her.

I can send you the book.  I read it twice already.  I need new books.  Badly.

[dc]

Two more I just thought of, both by Jared Diamond....

"Guns, Germs and Steel" and "Collapse". 

They both address why cultures succeeded or failed, and how the environment itself factored in to it.

[Gamplayerx]

I just read a book by Michael Crichton called "State of Fear."  It wasn't very good.  I don't recommend it.

If you're looking for a funny book, for some reason I saved this Fark thread (I think it went to regular fark, I don't know how to find out): http://forums.fark.com/cgi/fark/comments.pl?IDLink=731975

[nishi]

My mom just told me yesterday that my grandmother can hardly see anymore.  But I think "Star" would be a bit too racy for her.

well, not to worry. in both the catalogue of available titles AND in the introductory material in the recorded version of the book, listeners are warned about books with sex, violence, or bad language.

but really - her physician would have the one-page form you'd have to fill out. the doc signs it, you send it in, they send her a player and a catalogue of titles (with short annotations so she knows a little about what the book is about). she makes her selection, submits it to the library, and the books come in the mail, with return postage also paid. it's a great service. really fantastic, especially for people who were always active readers and then find themselves unable to see well enough to read. it's really a shame that more doctors do not let patients know when they become eligible for it.

[ursus]

One of Tony Horwitz'z (?) books:

Confederates in the Attic
Blue Latitudes
Baghdad with out a Roadmap

He's a "travel" writer, and they are all fun books.

[Gamplayerx]

Nishi, will you e-mail me exactly what I should tell her to tell her doctor to get a hold of said form?

[nishi]

Nishi, will you e-mail me exactly what I should tell her to tell her doctor to get a hold of said form?

i'll just post it here, in case anyone else needs it (hatt's grandparents come to mind. this is also a program that babybahn will be eligible for, i suspect - i know you guys read to him, but as he gets older there are lots and lots of books for kids. i know a lot of adults who have been visually impaired since childhood who can see well enough to read, but whose eyes tire easily. they tend to use the service for listening to books they enjoy and save their eyes for work, technical reading, coursework and stuff like that).

you call the doctor. you tell them that your grandmother's vision has really deteriorated and you know she would be eligible for the National Library Service Program for the Blind and Visually Impaired. they should know what you're talking about.or you could call her eye doctor, if she has one. i know they would know.  here are the criteria for being able to use the program:
http://www.loc.gov/nls/eligible.html

and here is where the form is - so you can take it to the doctor's office and hand it to them - and where it should be sent:
http://www.loc.gov/nls/signup.html

[Gamplayerx]

thanks, nishi!