Book List.html

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  16     <h1>A Not So Fancy Listing of Books</h1>
  17    <div class="contents">
  18 <dl>
  19 <dt>
  20 <a href="#sec1">Douglas Adams</a>
  21 </dt>
  22 <dd>
  23 <dl>
  24 <dt>
  25 <a href="#sec2">Hitchiker's Guide to the Galaxy (collected)</a>
  26 </dt>
  27 <dt>
  28 <a href="#sec3">The Long Dark Tea-Time of the Soul</a>
  29 </dt>
  30 </dl>
  31 </dd>
  32 <dt>
  33 <a href="#sec4">Aeschylus</a>
  34 </dt>
  35 <dd>
  36 <dl>
  37 <dt>
  38 <a href="#sec5">Oresteia</a>
  39 </dt>
  40 <dt>
  41 <a href="#sec6">Prometheus Bound</a>
  42 </dt>
  43 <dt>
  44 <a href="#sec7">The Persians</a>
  45 </dt>
  46 </dl>
  47 </dd>
  48 <dt>
  49 <a href="#sec8">John Allison</a>
  50 </dt>
  51 <dd>
  52 <dl>
  53 <dt>
  54 <a href="#sec9">Looks, Brains and Everything</a>
  55 </dt>
  56 <dt>
  57 <a href="#sec10">Blame the Sky</a>
  58 </dt>
  59 <dt>
  60 <a href="#sec11">Skellington</a>
  61 </dt>
  62 <dt>
  63 <a href="#sec12">The Retribution Index</a>
  64 </dt>
  65 <dt>
  66 <a href="#sec13">Great Aches</a>
  67 </dt>
  68 <dt>
  69 <a href="#sec14">Ahoy Hoy!</a>
  70 </dt>
  71 <dt>
  72 <a href="#sec15">Heavy Metal Hearts and Flowers</a>
  73 </dt>
  74 <dt>
  75 <a href="#sec16">Ghosts</a>
  76 </dt>
  77 </dl>
  78 </dd>
  79 <dt>
  80 <a href="#sec17">Aristophanes</a>
  81 </dt>
  82 <dd>
  83 <dl>
  84 <dt>
  85 <a href="#sec18">The Frogs</a>
  86 </dt>
  87 <dt>
  88 <a href="#sec19">The Clouds</a>
  89 </dt>
  90 <dt>
  91 <a href="#sec20">Ecclesiazusae</a>
  92 </dt>
  93 </dl>
  94 </dd>
  95 <dt>
  96 <a href="#sec21">Aristotle</a>
  97 </dt>
  98 <dd>
  99 <dl>
 100 <dt>
 101 <a href="#sec22">Ethics</a>
 102 </dt>
 103 <dt>
 104 <a href="#sec23">Categories</a>
 105 </dt>
 106 <dt>
 107 <a href="#sec24">Poetics</a>
 108 </dt>
 109 <dt>
 110 <a href="#sec25">Rhetoric</a>
 111 </dt>
 112 </dl>
 113 </dd>
 114 <dt>
 115 <a href="#sec26">Marcus Aurelius</a>
 116 </dt>
 117 <dd>
 118 <dl>
 119 <dt>
 120 <a href="#sec27">Meditations</a>
 121 </dt>
 122 </dl>
 123 </dd>
 124 <dt>
 125 <a href="#sec28">William Blake</a>
 126 </dt>
 127 <dd>
 128 <dl>
 129 <dt>
 130 <a href="#sec29">The Four Zoas</a>
 131 </dt>
 132 <dt>
 133 <a href="#sec30">Jerusalem</a>
 134 </dt>
 135 </dl>
 136 </dd>
 137 <dt>
 138 <a href="#sec31">Confucius</a>
 139 </dt>
 140 <dd>
 141 <dl>
 142 <dt>
 143 <a href="#sec32">Analects</a>
 144 </dt>
 145 </dl>
 146 </dd>
 147 <dt>
 148 <a href="#sec33">Neil Gaiman</a>
 149 </dt>
 150 <dd>
 151 <dl>
 152 <dt>
 153 <a href="#sec34">The Sandman (series)</a>
 154 </dt>
 155 </dl>
 156 </dd>
 157 <dt>
 158 <a href="#sec35">John Taylor Gatto</a>
 159 </dt>
 160 <dd>
 161 <dl>
 162 <dt>
 163 <a href="#sec36">Underground History of American Education</a>
 164 </dt>
 165 </dl>
 166 </dd>
 167 <dt>
 168 <a href="#sec37">Kahlil Gibran</a>
 169 </dt>
 170 <dd>
 171 <dl>
 172 <dt>
 173 <a href="#sec38">A Tear and a Smile</a>
 174 </dt>
 175 <dt>
 176 <a href="#sec39">The Prophet</a>
 177 </dt>
 178 <dt>
 179 <a href="#sec40">Sand and Foam</a>
 180 </dt>
 181 <dt>
 182 <a href="#sec41">The Madman</a>
 183 </dt>
 184 </dl>
 185 </dd>
 186 <dt>
 187 <a href="#sec42">Homer</a>
 188 </dt>
 189 <dd>
 190 <dl>
 191 <dt>
 192 <a href="#sec43">The Odyssey</a>
 193 </dt>
 194 </dl>
 195 </dd>
 196 <dt>
 197 <a href="#sec44">Aldous Huxley</a>
 198 </dt>
 199 <dd>
 200 <dl>
 201 <dt>
 202 <a href="#sec45">The Doors of Perception</a>
 203 </dt>
 204 <dt>
 205 <a href="#sec46">Heaven and Hell</a>
 206 </dt>
 207 </dl>
 208 </dd>
 209 <dt>
 210 <a href="#sec47">William James</a>
 211 </dt>
 212 <dd>
 213 <dl>
 214 <dt>
 215 <a href="#sec48">The Varieties of Religious Experience</a>
 216 </dt>
 217 <dt>
 218 <a href="#sec49">The PhD Octopus</a>
 219 </dt>
 220 </dl>
 221 </dd>
 222 <dt>
 223 <a href="#sec50">Henry James</a>
 224 </dt>
 225 <dd>
 226 <dl>
 227 <dt>
 228 <a href="#sec51">The Altar of the Dead</a>
 229 </dt>
 230 </dl>
 231 </dd>
 232 <dt>
 233 <a href="#sec52">Gregor Kiczales</a>
 234 </dt>
 235 <dd>
 236 <dl>
 237 <dt>
 238 <a href="#sec53">The Art of the Metaobject Protocol</a>
 239 </dt>
 240 </dl>
 241 </dd>
 242 <dt>
 243 <a href="#sec54">Søren Kierkegaard</a>
 244 </dt>
 245 <dd>
 246 <dl>
 247 <dt>
 248 <a href="#sec55">Sickness Unto Death</a>
 249 </dt>
 250 <dt>
 251 <a href="#sec56">Either/Or</a>
 252 </dt>
 253 <dt>
 254 <a href="#sec57">Fear and Trembling</a>
 255 </dt>
 256 <dt>
 257 <a href="#sec58">Repetition</a>
 258 </dt>
 259 </dl>
 260 </dd>
 261 <dt>
 262 <a href="#sec59">David Lamkins</a>
 263 </dt>
 264 <dt>
 265 <a href="#sec60">Mencius</a>
 266 </dt>
 267 <dd>
 268 <dl>
 269 <dt>
 270 <a href="#sec61">Mencius</a>
 271 </dt>
 272 </dl>
 273 </dd>
 274 <dt>
 275 <a href="#sec62">Walter Miller</a>
 276 </dt>
 277 <dd>
 278 <dl>
 279 <dt>
 280 <a href="#sec63">A Canticle for Leibowitz</a>
 281 </dt>
 282 </dl>
 283 </dd>
 284 <dt>
 285 <a href="#sec64">Alan Moore</a>
 286 </dt>
 287 <dd>
 288 <dl>
 289 <dt>
 290 <a href="#sec65">Watchmen</a>
 291 </dt>
 292 <dt>
 293 <a href="#sec66">V for Vendetta</a>
 294 </dt>
 295 </dl>
 296 </dd>
 297 <dt>
 298 <a href="#sec67">Thomas More</a>
 299 </dt>
 300 <dd>
 301 <dl>
 302 <dt>
 303 <a href="#sec68">Utopia</a>
 304 </dt>
 305 </dl>
 306 </dd>
 307 <dt>
 308 <a href="#sec69">Friedrich Nietzsche</a>
 309 </dt>
 310 <dd>
 311 <dl>
 312 <dt>
 313 <a href="#sec70">Beyond Good and Evil</a>
 314 </dt>
 315 <dt>
 316 <a href="#sec71">On the Geneaology of Morals</a>
 317 </dt>
 318 <dt>
 319 <a href="#sec72">Ecce Homo</a>
 320 </dt>
 321 </dl>
 322 </dd>
 323 <dt>
 324 <a href="#sec73">George Orwell</a>
 325 </dt>
 326 <dd>
 327 <dl>
 328 <dt>
 329 <a href="#sec74">1984</a>
 330 </dt>
 331 <dt>
 332 <a href="#sec75">Animal Farm</a>
 333 </dt>
 334 </dl>
 335 </dd>
 336 <dt>
 337 <a href="#sec76">Plato</a>
 338 </dt>
 339 <dd>
 340 <dl>
 341 <dt>
 342 <a href="#sec77">Symposium</a>
 343 </dt>
 344 <dt>
 345 <a href="#sec78">Euthyphro</a>
 346 </dt>
 347 <dt>
 348 <a href="#sec79">Apology</a>
 349 </dt>
 350 <dt>
 351 <a href="#sec80">Crito</a>
 352 </dt>
 353 <dt>
 354 <a href="#sec81">Phaedo</a>
 355 </dt>
 356 <dt>
 357 <a href="#sec82">Protagoras</a>
 358 </dt>
 359 </dl>
 360 </dd>
 361 <dt>
 362 <a href="#sec83">Luke Rhinehardt</a>
 363 </dt>
 364 <dd>
 365 <dl>
 366 <dt>
 367 <a href="#sec84">The Dice Man</a>
 368 </dt>
 369 </dl>
 370 </dd>
 371 <dt>
 372 <a href="#sec85">Neal Stephenson</a>
 373 </dt>
 374 <dd>
 375 <dl>
 376 <dt>
 377 <a href="#sec86">Snow Crash</a>
 378 </dt>
 379 <dt>
 380 <a href="#sec87">Cryptonomicon</a>
 381 </dt>
 382 </dl>
 383 </dd>
 384 <dt>
 385 <a href="#sec88">Bjarne Stroustrup</a>
 386 </dt>
 387 <dd>
 388 <dl>
 389 <dt>
 390 <a href="#sec89">The C++ Programming Language (3rd edition)</a>
 391 </dt>
 392 </dl>
 393 </dd>
 394 <dt>
 395 <a href="#sec90">JRR Tolkien</a>
 396 </dt>
 397 <dd>
 398 <dl>
 399 <dt>
 400 <a href="#sec91">The Lord of the Rings</a>
 401 </dt>
 402 <dt>
 403 <a href="#sec92">The Silmarillion</a>
 404 </dt>
 405 <dt>
 406 <a href="#sec93">The Lost Tales</a>
 407 </dt>
 408 </dl>
 409 </dd>
 410 <dt>
 411 <a href="#sec94">H.G. Wells</a>
 412 </dt>
 413 <dd>
 414 <dl>
 415 <dt>
 416 <a href="#sec95">The Island of Dr Moreau</a>
 417 </dt>
 418 </dl>
 419 </dd>
 420 </dl>
 421 </div>
 422
 423
 424 <!-- Page published by Emacs Muse begins here --><h2><a name="sec1" id="sec1"></a>
 425 Douglas Adams</h2>
 426
 427
 428
 429 <h3><a name="sec2" id="sec2"></a>
 430 Hitchiker's Guide to the Galaxy (collected)</h3>
 431
 432 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">•• </span> (8) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
 433
 434
 435
 436
 437
 438 <h3><a name="sec3" id="sec3"></a>
 439 The Long Dark Tea-Time of the Soul</h3>
 440
 441 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">•••• </span> (6) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
 442
 443
 444
 445
 446
 447
 448 <h2><a name="sec4" id="sec4"></a>
 449 Aeschylus</h2>
 450
 451
 452
 453 <h3><a name="sec5" id="sec5"></a>
 454 Oresteia</h3>
 455
 456 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad"> </span> (10) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
 457
 458
 459
 460
 461
 462 <h3><a name="sec6" id="sec6"></a>
 463 Prometheus Bound</h3>
 464
 465 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> •••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">• </span> (9) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
 466
 467
 468
 469
 470
 471 <h3><a name="sec7" id="sec7"></a>
 472 The Persians</h3>
 473
 474 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">•• </span> (8) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
 475
 476
 477
 478
 479
 480
 481 <h2><a name="sec8" id="sec8"></a>
 482 John Allison</h2>
 483
 484 <p class="first">The author of the rather amazing [[<a href="http://scarygoround.com">http://scarygoround.com</a>][ScaryGo Round].
 485 I highly recommend procuring the printed collections; the printing
 486 quality is superb (full color on glossy paper), and the long story
 487 arcs are much easier to read.</p>
 488
 489 <h3><a name="sec9" id="sec9"></a>
 490 Looks, Brains and Everything</h3>
 491
 492 <p><em>Fiction</em></p>
 493
 494
 495
 496
 497
 498 <h3><a name="sec10" id="sec10"></a>
 499 Blame the Sky</h3>
 500
 501 <p><em>Fiction</em></p>
 502
 503
 504
 505
 506
 507 <h3><a name="sec11" id="sec11"></a>
 508 Skellington</h3>
 509
 510 <p><em>Fiction</em></p>
 511
 512
 513
 514
 515
 516 <h3><a name="sec12" id="sec12"></a>
 517 The Retribution Index</h3>
 518
 519 <p><em>Fiction</em></p>
 520
 521
 522
 523
 524
 525 <h3><a name="sec13" id="sec13"></a>
 526 Great Aches</h3>
 527
 528 <p><em>Fiction</em></p>
 529
 530
 531
 532
 533
 534 <h3><a name="sec14" id="sec14"></a>
 535 Ahoy Hoy!</h3>
 536
 537 <p><em>Fiction</em></p>
 538
 539
 540
 541
 542
 543 <h3><a name="sec15" id="sec15"></a>
 544 Heavy Metal Hearts and Flowers</h3>
 545
 546 <p><em>Fiction</em></p>
 547
 548
 549
 550
 551
 552 <h3><a name="sec16" id="sec16"></a>
 553 Ghosts</h3>
 554
 555 <p><em>Fiction</em></p>
 556
 557
 558
 559
 560
 561
 562 <h2><a name="sec17" id="sec17"></a>
 563 Aristophanes</h2>
 564
 565
 566
 567 <h3><a name="sec18" id="sec18"></a>
 568 The Frogs</h3>
 569
 570 <p><em>Fiction</em></p>
 571
 572
 573
 574
 575
 576 <h3><a name="sec19" id="sec19"></a>
 577 The Clouds</h3>
 578
 579 <p><em>Fiction</em></p>
 580
 581
 582
 583
 584
 585 <h3><a name="sec20" id="sec20"></a>
 586 Ecclesiazusae</h3>
 587
 588 <p><em>Fiction</em></p>
 589
 590
 591
 592
 593
 594
 595 <h2><a name="sec21" id="sec21"></a>
 596 Aristotle</h2>
 597
 598
 599
 600 <h3><a name="sec22" id="sec22"></a>
 601 Ethics</h3>
 602
 603 <p><em>Nonfiction</em></p>
 604
 605
 606
 607
 608
 609 <h3><a name="sec23" id="sec23"></a>
 610 Categories</h3>
 611
 612 <p><em>Nonfiction</em></p>
 613
 614
 615
 616
 617
 618 <h3><a name="sec24" id="sec24"></a>
 619 Poetics</h3>
 620
 621 <p><em>Nonfiction</em></p>
 622
 623
 624
 625
 626
 627 <h3><a name="sec25" id="sec25"></a>
 628 Rhetoric</h3>
 629
 630 <p><em>Nonfiction</em></p>
 631
 632
 633
 634
 635
 636
 637 <h2><a name="sec26" id="sec26"></a>
 638 Marcus Aurelius</h2>
 639
 640
 641
 642 <h3><a name="sec27" id="sec27"></a>
 643 Meditations</h3>
 644
 645 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••</span><span class="rating-bad">•••••• </span> (4) / <em>Nonfiction</em></p>
 646
 647 <p>At the time, I enjoyed reading this collection of meditations on
 648 Stoic philosophy, and it was a fairly quick read (fifteen minutes a
 649 day over the course of two weeks for me). Nowadays I've read
 650 Epictetus, and I suggest reading his <em>Discourses</em> instead.</p>
 651
 652
 653
 654
 655 <h2><a name="sec28" id="sec28"></a>
 656 William Blake</h2>
 657
 658 <p class="first">Blake is my <a href="William%20Blake.html">favorite</a> of the English poets. His
 659 unique use of relief etching and watercoloring makes for very
 660 interesting Illuminated works. There is a very high quality
 661 <a href="http://blakearchive.org">complete archive of Blake's works</a> online
 662 with high resolution plate scans and full transcriptions among other
 663 things.</p>
 664
 665 <h3><a name="sec29" id="sec29"></a>
 666 The Four Zoas</h3>
 667
 668 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad"> </span> (10) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
 669
 670 <p>The unfinished manuscript of Blake's longest apocalypse. The
 671 Four Zoas divide from Albion and rage through the ages of dismal woe
 672 to bring about the end of the cycle of Ulro and restore the cycle of
 673 Beulah.</p>
 674
 675
 676
 677 <h3><a name="sec30" id="sec30"></a>
 678 Jerusalem</h3>
 679
 680 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad"> </span> (10) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
 681
 682 <p>The finest of Blake's Illuminated works.</p>
 683
 684
 685
 686
 687 <h2><a name="sec31" id="sec31"></a>
 688 Confucius</h2>
 689
 690
 691
 692 <h3><a name="sec32" id="sec32"></a>
 693 Analects</h3>
 694
 695 <p><em>Nonfiction</em></p>
 696
 697
 698
 699
 700
 701
 702 <h2><a name="sec33" id="sec33"></a>
 703 Neil Gaiman</h2>
 704
 705
 706
 707 <h3><a name="sec34" id="sec34"></a>
 708 The Sandman (series)</h3>
 709
 710 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad"> </span> (10) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
 711
 712 <p>Perhaps the best comic book series of all time; I would say <em>The
 713 Sandman</em> as a whole ranks higher than anything even Alan Moore has
 714 written.</p>
 715
 716
 717
 718
 719 <h2><a name="sec35" id="sec35"></a>
 720 John Taylor Gatto</h2>
 721
 722 <p class="first">Former teacher and now author-activist.</p>
 723
 724 <h3><a name="sec36" id="sec36"></a>
 725 Underground History of American Education</h3>
 726
 727 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> •••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">• </span> (9) / <em>Nonfiction</em></p>
 728
 729 <p>An interesting <em>underground</em> history of the American education
 730 system. Available
 731 <a href="http://www.johntaylorgatto.com/underground/">online for free</a>.</p>
 732
 733
 734
 735
 736 <h2><a name="sec37" id="sec37"></a>
 737 Kahlil Gibran</h2>
 738
 739 <p class="first">Kahlil Gibran is fairly interesting; his earlier works do not
 740 agree with my æsthetic sense (blah blah), but <em>The Madman</em> onward are
 741 all rather nice. A few of his works are
 742 <a href="http://leb.net/~mira/">online</a>, but I recommend scouting used book
 743 stores for old hardcover editions. The (late 90s onward at least)
 744 <em>hardcover</em> versions from <em>Alfred A. Knopf</em> are in fact permabound
 745 paperbacks with a hardcasing, and are of seriously inferior quality to
 746 the editions from the 50s and 60s (and cost quite a bit more,
 747 naturally).</p>
 748
 749 <h3><a name="sec38" id="sec38"></a>
 750 A Tear and a Smile</h3>
 751
 752 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> •••</span><span class="rating-bad">••••••• </span> (3) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
 753
 754 <p>One of Kahlil Gibran's earlier works, I did not much like <em>A
 755 Tear and a Smile</em> excepting the last poem (&quot;A Poet's Voice&quot;).</p>
 756
 757
 758
 759 <h3><a name="sec39" id="sec39"></a>
 760 The Prophet</h3>
 761
 762 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> •••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">• </span> (9) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
 763
 764
 765
 766
 767
 768 <h3><a name="sec40" id="sec40"></a>
 769 Sand and Foam</h3>
 770
 771 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> •••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">••• </span> (7) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
 772
 773 <p>An interesting little book of aphorisms.</p>
 774
 775
 776
 777 <h3><a name="sec41" id="sec41"></a>
 778 The Madman</h3>
 779
 780 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">•• </span> (8) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
 781
 782
 783
 784
 785
 786
 787 <h2><a name="sec42" id="sec42"></a>
 788 Homer</h2>
 789
 790
 791
 792 <h3><a name="sec43" id="sec43"></a>
 793 The Odyssey</h3>
 794
 795 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad"> </span> (10) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
 796
 797
 798
 799
 800
 801
 802 <h2><a name="sec44" id="sec44"></a>
 803 Aldous Huxley</h2>
 804
 805 <p class="first">Perhaps the most overrated modern writer. Other people have written
 806 everything he has to write better and many years before he got around
 807 to it.</p>
 808
 809 <h3><a name="sec45" id="sec45"></a>
 810 The Doors of Perception</h3>
 811
 812 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> </span><span class="rating-bad">•••••••••• </span> (0) / <em>Nonfiction</em></p>
 813
 814 <p>Huxley stains the name of Blake by naming this horrible
 815 pseudo-scientific and pseudo-poetic essay after a line from <em>The
 816 Marriage of Heaven and Hell</em>. Subjectivity and objectivity are
 817 incommensurable; his attempt and being subjectively objective is
 818 utterly worthless.</p>
 819
 820
 821
 822 <h3><a name="sec46" id="sec46"></a>
 823 Heaven and Hell</h3>
 824
 825 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> </span><span class="rating-bad">•••••••••• </span> (0) / <em>Nonfiction</em></p>
 826
 827 <p>Blah blah LSD blah blah Mushrooms blah blah Peytoe blah blah I'm
 828 Aldous Huxley I'm a pretentious jerk. Don't bother.</p>
 829
 830
 831
 832
 833 <h2><a name="sec47" id="sec47"></a>
 834 William James</h2>
 835
 836
 837
 838 <h3><a name="sec48" id="sec48"></a>
 839 The Varieties of Religious Experience</h3>
 840
 841 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> •••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">••• </span> (7) / <em>Nonfiction</em></p>
 842
 843 <p><a href="William%20James%20-%20The%20Varieties%20of%20Religious%20Experience.html">A partially finished extended summary</a></p>
 844
 845
 846
 847 <h3><a name="sec49" id="sec49"></a>
 848 The PhD Octopus</h3>
 849
 850 <p><em>Nonfiction</em></p>
 851
 852 <blockquote>
 853 <p class="quoted">
 854 America is thus as a nation rapidly drifting towards a state of things
 855 in which no man of science or letters will be accounted respectable
 856 unless some kind of badge or diploma is stamped upon him, and in which
 857 bare personality will be a mark of outcast estate.  It seems to me high
 858 time to rouse ourselves to consciousness, and to cast a critical eye
 859 upon this decidedly grotesque tendency.  Other nations suffer terribly
 860 from the Mandarin disease.  Are we doomed to suffer like the rest?</p>
 861
 862 </blockquote>
 863
 864 <p><a href="William%20James%20-%20The%20PhD%20Octopus.html">Full Text</a></p>
 865
 866
 867
 868
 869 <h2><a name="sec50" id="sec50"></a>
 870 Henry James</h2>
 871
 872 <p class="first">The novelist brother of William James; I've not read many (read:
 873 one) of his books, but what I did was decent.</p>
 874
 875 <h3><a name="sec51" id="sec51"></a>
 876 The Altar of the Dead</h3>
 877
 878 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> •••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">••• </span> (7) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
 879
 880 <p>A short novella about a man who maintained an altar in a church
 881 for all of his lost loved ones on the surface, but something a bit
 882 more beneath.</p>
 883
 884
 885
 886
 887 <h2><a name="sec52" id="sec52"></a>
 888 Gregor Kiczales</h2>
 889
 890
 891
 892 <h3><a name="sec53" id="sec53"></a>
 893 The Art of the Metaobject Protocol</h3>
 894
 895 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad"> </span> (10) / <em>Nonfiction</em></p>
 896
 897 <p>AMOP is useful as a reference to the CLOS MOP (although less so with
 898 the online MOP spec), but the true value of the book lies in the first
 899 half of the book. It presents the design of the CLOS MOP through a
 900 series of revisions that fix limitations of earlier implementations
 901 and gradually work toward a generic and well designed MOP for
 902 CLOS. Through that process one is made more aware of a few general
 903 object protocol design skills, and gains insight into how to cleanly
 904 make mapping decisions customizable.</p>
 905
 906
 907
 908
 909 <h2><a name="sec54" id="sec54"></a>
 910 Søren Kierkegaard</h2>
 911
 912 <p class="first">Kierkegaard was a master of style and philosophy; his writing is
 913 interesting even if one finds the theistic extentialism espoused
 914 disagreeable.</p>
 915
 916 <h3><a name="sec55" id="sec55"></a>
 917 Sickness Unto Death</h3>
 918
 919 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad"> </span> (10) / <em>Nonfiction</em></p>
 920
 921 <p>I purchased this when I was looking through books at a store after
 922 being unable to find the book I really wanted, and I must say that it
 923 was better for me to have found this one.</p>
 924
 925 <p>Contained within is a beautiful analysis of despair in the context of
 926 Christianity (really theism in general). Even if the argument offends,
 927 the presentation cannot. The dialectical nature of despair is
 928 reflected in every aspect of the work, and the method of presentation
 929 forces reflection.</p>
 930
 931
 932
 933 <h3><a name="sec56" id="sec56"></a>
 934 Either/Or</h3>
 935
 936 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad"> </span> (10) / <em>Nonfiction</em></p>
 937
 938 <p>Composed of two portions, <em>Either/Or</em> is a rather lengthy but
 939 rewarding read. The first book is a series of essays and a diary of a
 940 young esthetician; the second is a pair of long letters from an older
 941 ethicist friend to this esthetician. You are then left to resolve the
 942 conflict between the views.</p>
 943
 944
 945
 946 <h3><a name="sec57" id="sec57"></a>
 947 Fear and Trembling</h3>
 948
 949 <p><em>Nonfiction</em></p>
 950
 951 <p>An interesting dialectical lyric contrasting Despair and Faith.</p>
 952
 953
 954
 955 <h3><a name="sec58" id="sec58"></a>
 956 Repetition</h3>
 957
 958 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad"> </span> (10) / <em>Nonfiction</em></p>
 959
 960 <p>He who despairs of esthetic repetition gets none; he who despairs
 961 of ethical repetition receieves the esthetic. Is it true then that no
 962 repetition exists? Is transition all one can hope for?</p>
 963
 964
 965
 966
 967 <h2><a name="sec59" id="sec59"></a>
 968 David Lamkins</h2>
 969
 970 <p class="first">(Successful Lisp NONFICTION 8
 971 <blockquote>
 972 <p class="quoted">After learning Scheme, I read <em>Successful Lisp</em> and was able to
 973 pick up Common Lisp fairly easily.)</p>
 974 </blockquote>
 975
 976
 977 <h2><a name="sec60" id="sec60"></a>
 978 Mencius</h2>
 979
 980
 981
 982 <h3><a name="sec61" id="sec61"></a>
 983 Mencius</h3>
 984
 985 <p><em>Nonfiction</em></p>
 986
 987
 988
 989
 990
 991
 992 <h2><a name="sec62" id="sec62"></a>
 993 Walter Miller</h2>
 994
 995
 996
 997 <h3><a name="sec63" id="sec63"></a>
 998 A Canticle for Leibowitz</h3>
 999
1000 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad"> </span> (10) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
1001
1002
1003
1004
1005
1006
1007 <h2><a name="sec64" id="sec64"></a>
1008 Alan Moore</h2>
1009
1010
1011
1012 <h3><a name="sec65" id="sec65"></a>
1013 Watchmen</h3>
1014
1015 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">•• </span> (8) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
1016
1017
1018
1019
1020
1021 <h3><a name="sec66" id="sec66"></a>
1022 V for Vendetta</h3>
1023
1024 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad"> </span> (10) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
1025
1026
1027
1028
1029
1030
1031 <h2><a name="sec67" id="sec67"></a>
1032 Thomas More</h2>
1033
1034
1035
1036 <h3><a name="sec68" id="sec68"></a>
1037 Utopia</h3>
1038
1039 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> •••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">••• </span> (7) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
1040
1041 <p>I read most of Utopia in high school with the TI-89 ebook reader, but
1042 the way the book was split up made it a bit difficult to grasp the
1043 overall structure. I found a copy at a used book store one day, and so
1044 I read it again, and found it much more comprehensible. It is a quick
1045 read, and decent piece of literature. The interesting social system
1046 espoused resembles resembles state communism (even if perhaps as a
1047 negative ideal), but with an strange blend of 14th century European
1048 social customs.</p>
1049
1050
1051
1052
1053 <h2><a name="sec69" id="sec69"></a>
1054 Friedrich Nietzsche</h2>
1055
1056 <p class="first">A bit acerbic and esoteric, Nietzsche is for me a good <em>secular</em>
1057 counterpart to Kierkegaard's theistic philosophy. Nietzsche's
1058 polemical works raise important questions for anyone who reads works
1059 on ethics. As such it is a shame that he has gotten a bad reputation
1060 by being read by far too many angsty teenagers who see (and relay)
1061 only Nietzsche the asshole rather than Nietzsche the master of the
1062 polemic.</p>
1063
1064 <h3><a name="sec70" id="sec70"></a>
1065 Beyond Good and Evil</h3>
1066
1067 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">•• </span> (8) / <em>Nonfiction</em></p>
1068
1069 <p>A somewhat more comprehensible, if a bit less aesthetically
1070 pleasing, presentation of much of the philosophy found in <em>Thus Spoke
1071 Zarathustra</em> in the negative form. The final chapters are very
1072 important (not to detract from the value of the rest of the work) if
1073 one wishes to understand <em>On the Genealogy of Morals</em>.</p>
1074
1075
1076
1077 <h3><a name="sec71" id="sec71"></a>
1078 On the Geneaology of Morals</h3>
1079
1080 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> •••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">• </span> (9) / <em>Nonfiction</em></p>
1081
1082 <p><em>On the Geneaology of Morals</em> is a wonderful book of three
1083 polemical essays on the origin of moral/ethic valuations, and the
1084 blindness of modern philosphers whose very thinking is tainted by
1085 these valuations unknowingly.</p>
1086
1087
1088
1089 <h3><a name="sec72" id="sec72"></a>
1090 Ecce Homo</h3>
1091
1092 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> •••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">••• </span> (7) / <em>Nonfiction</em></p>
1093
1094 <p><em>Ecce Homo</em> is Nietzsche's very strange autobiography and
1095 explanation of his own works. At points it is clear that it could have
1096 used a bit more editing (prevented by Nietzsche ... falling into a
1097 catatonic state and all), but is still a very useful book to read as
1098 Nietzsche explains the overall structure of his works.</p>
1099
1100
1101
1102
1103 <h2><a name="sec73" id="sec73"></a>
1104 George Orwell</h2>
1105
1106
1107
1108 <h3><a name="sec74" id="sec74"></a>
1109 1984</h3>
1110
1111 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad"> </span> (10) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
1112
1113
1114
1115
1116
1117 <h3><a name="sec75" id="sec75"></a>
1118 Animal Farm</h3>
1119
1120 <p><em>Fiction</em></p>
1121
1122
1123
1124
1125
1126
1127 <h2><a name="sec76" id="sec76"></a>
1128 Plato</h2>
1129
1130
1131
1132 <h3><a name="sec77" id="sec77"></a>
1133 Symposium</h3>
1134
1135 <p><em>Fiction</em></p>
1136
1137
1138
1139
1140
1141 <h3><a name="sec78" id="sec78"></a>
1142 Euthyphro</h3>
1143
1144 <p><em>Fiction</em></p>
1145
1146
1147
1148
1149
1150 <h3><a name="sec79" id="sec79"></a>
1151 Apology</h3>
1152
1153 <p><em>Nonfiction</em></p>
1154
1155
1156
1157
1158
1159 <h3><a name="sec80" id="sec80"></a>
1160 Crito</h3>
1161
1162 <p><em>Fiction</em></p>
1163
1164
1165
1166
1167
1168 <h3><a name="sec81" id="sec81"></a>
1169 Phaedo</h3>
1170
1171 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad"> </span> (10) / <em>Nonfiction</em></p>
1172
1173
1174
1175
1176
1177 <h3><a name="sec82" id="sec82"></a>
1178 Protagoras</h3>
1179
1180 <p><em>Fiction</em></p>
1181
1182
1183
1184
1185
1186
1187 <h2><a name="sec83" id="sec83"></a>
1188 Luke Rhinehardt</h2>
1189
1190
1191
1192 <h3><a name="sec84" id="sec84"></a>
1193 The Dice Man</h3>
1194
1195 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> •••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">••• </span> (7) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
1196
1197 <blockquote>
1198 <p class="quoted">
1199 And it's his illusions about what
1200 constitutes the real world which are
1201 inhibiting him...
1202 His reality, his reason, his society
1203 ...these are what must be destroyed</p>
1204
1205 </blockquote>
1206
1207 <p>A quotation from one of my <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slaughter_of_the_Soul">favorite metal songs</a> inspired me to grab
1208 this book; at worst it would be a waste of time. Much reward was found
1209 in this random stab in the dark. The book is framed as an
1210 autobiography of the author as a psychoanalyst, and his progression
1211 through life as a Dice Man after deciding to live his life through
1212 random chance.</p>
1213
1214 <p>The style, plot, and content are equally neurotic; part comedy, part
1215 attack on psychoanalysis, and part deep philosophy. It was often
1216 difficult to put down, and was read in under a week of spare time.</p>
1217
1218
1219
1220
1221 <h2><a name="sec85" id="sec85"></a>
1222 Neal Stephenson</h2>
1223
1224
1225
1226 <h3><a name="sec86" id="sec86"></a>
1227 Snow Crash</h3>
1228
1229 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> •••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">• </span> (9) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
1230
1231 <p>As one must read the <em>Bible</em> to understand English literature, so one
1232 must read <em>Snow Crash</em> today to be a nerd. In the realm of modern pop
1233 fiction this is one of the better books I've read; it was devoured in
1234 a mere four nights. Neal Stepheson may not be Milton, but he does come
1235 up with enganging tales. <em>Snow Crash</em> has a nice undertone of (quite
1236 accurate) political and social commentary that makes it worth reading
1237 as more than mere cyberpunk fiction.</p>
1238
1239
1240
1241 <h3><a name="sec87" id="sec87"></a>
1242 Cryptonomicon</h3>
1243
1244 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">•• </span> (8) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
1245
1246 <p>I read <em>Cryptonomicon</em> when it was new, and at the time I thought it was
1247 good. It could have lost a hundred or so pages without detracting from
1248 the plot, but it was easy reading and didn't take very long to
1249 finish. The story was enganging, and the continual switching between
1250 the 1940s and present day slowly unravelled the tale in a nice way.</p>
1251
1252 <p>I'd still have to recommend <em>Snow Crash</em> if one wished to read only one
1253 Stephenson novel.</p>
1254
1255
1256
1257
1258 <h2><a name="sec88" id="sec88"></a>
1259 Bjarne Stroustrup</h2>
1260
1261
1262
1263 <h3><a name="sec89" id="sec89"></a>
1264 The C++ Programming Language (3rd edition)</h3>
1265
1266 <p><em>Nonfiction</em></p>
1267
1268 <p>Once upon a time I was fifteen and I read this book. It was more
1269 or less what taught me how to write programs just large enough to do
1270 useful things, and so shall forever be remembered by me. A year and a
1271 half later I stumbled upon a little language called Scheme and fell
1272 down the rabbit hole.</p>
1273
1274
1275
1276
1277 <h2><a name="sec90" id="sec90"></a>
1278 JRR Tolkien</h2>
1279
1280
1281
1282 <h3><a name="sec91" id="sec91"></a>
1283 The Lord of the Rings</h3>
1284
1285 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> •••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">• </span> (9) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
1286
1287
1288
1289
1290
1291 <h3><a name="sec92" id="sec92"></a>
1292 The Silmarillion</h3>
1293
1294 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad"> </span> (10) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
1295
1296
1297
1298
1299
1300 <h3><a name="sec93" id="sec93"></a>
1301 The Lost Tales</h3>
1302
1303 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> •••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">••• </span> (7) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
1304
1305
1306
1307
1308
1309
1310 <h2><a name="sec94" id="sec94"></a>
1311 H.G. Wells</h2>
1312
1313
1314
1315 <h3><a name="sec95" id="sec95"></a>
1316 The Island of Dr Moreau</h3>
1317
1318 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> •••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">••• </span> (7) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
1319
1320
1321
1322   <!-- Page published by Emacs Muse ends here -->
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1347
1348 <p class="cke-footer">The body bags and little rags of children torn in two,
1349 And the jellied brains of those who remain to put the finger right on you
1350 As the madmen play on words and make us all dance to their song
1351 To the tune of starving millions to make a better kind of gun.
1352 </p>
1353 <p class="cke-timestamp">Last Modified:
1354     December 31, 2008</p>
1355   </body>
1356 </html>