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">Anonymous</a>
  81 </dt>
  82 <dd>
  83 <dl>
  84 <dt>
  85 <a href="#sec18">Chymical Wedding of Christian Rosenkreutz</a>
  86 </dt>
  87 </dl>
  88 </dd>
  89 <dt>
  90 <a href="#sec19">Aristophanes</a>
  91 </dt>
  92 <dd>
  93 <dl>
  94 <dt>
  95 <a href="#sec20">The Frogs</a>
  96 </dt>
  97 <dt>
  98 <a href="#sec21">The Clouds</a>
  99 </dt>
 100 <dt>
 101 <a href="#sec22">Ecclesiazusae</a>
 102 </dt>
 103 </dl>
 104 </dd>
 105 <dt>
 106 <a href="#sec23">Aristotle</a>
 107 </dt>
 108 <dd>
 109 <dl>
 110 <dt>
 111 <a href="#sec24">Ethics</a>
 112 </dt>
 113 <dt>
 114 <a href="#sec25">Categories</a>
 115 </dt>
 116 <dt>
 117 <a href="#sec26">Poetics</a>
 118 </dt>
 119 <dt>
 120 <a href="#sec27">Rhetoric</a>
 121 </dt>
 122 </dl>
 123 </dd>
 124 <dt>
 125 <a href="#sec28">Marcus Aurelius</a>
 126 </dt>
 127 <dd>
 128 <dl>
 129 <dt>
 130 <a href="#sec29">Meditations</a>
 131 </dt>
 132 </dl>
 133 </dd>
 134 <dt>
 135 <a href="#sec30">William Blake</a>
 136 </dt>
 137 <dd>
 138 <dl>
 139 <dt>
 140 <a href="#sec31">The Four Zoas</a>
 141 </dt>
 142 <dt>
 143 <a href="#sec32">Jerusalem</a>
 144 </dt>
 145 </dl>
 146 </dd>
 147 <dt>
 148 <a href="#sec33">Mike Carey</a>
 149 </dt>
 150 <dd>
 151 <dl>
 152 <dt>
 153 <a href="#sec34">Lucifer (series)</a>
 154 </dt>
 155 </dl>
 156 </dd>
 157 <dt>
 158 <a href="#sec35">Confucius</a>
 159 </dt>
 160 <dd>
 161 <dl>
 162 <dt>
 163 <a href="#sec36">Analects</a>
 164 </dt>
 165 </dl>
 166 </dd>
 167 <dt>
 168 <a href="#sec37">Neil Gaiman</a>
 169 </dt>
 170 <dd>
 171 <dl>
 172 <dt>
 173 <a href="#sec38">The Sandman (series)</a>
 174 </dt>
 175 <dt>
 176 <a href="#sec39">Good Omens</a>
 177 </dt>
 178 </dl>
 179 </dd>
 180 <dt>
 181 <a href="#sec40">John Taylor Gatto</a>
 182 </dt>
 183 <dd>
 184 <dl>
 185 <dt>
 186 <a href="#sec41">Underground History of American Education</a>
 187 </dt>
 188 </dl>
 189 </dd>
 190 <dt>
 191 <a href="#sec42">Kahlil Gibran</a>
 192 </dt>
 193 <dd>
 194 <dl>
 195 <dt>
 196 <a href="#sec43">A Tear and a Smile</a>
 197 </dt>
 198 <dt>
 199 <a href="#sec44">The Prophet</a>
 200 </dt>
 201 <dt>
 202 <a href="#sec45">Sand and Foam</a>
 203 </dt>
 204 <dt>
 205 <a href="#sec46">The Madman</a>
 206 </dt>
 207 </dl>
 208 </dd>
 209 <dt>
 210 <a href="#sec47">Homer</a>
 211 </dt>
 212 <dd>
 213 <dl>
 214 <dt>
 215 <a href="#sec48">The Odyssey</a>
 216 </dt>
 217 </dl>
 218 </dd>
 219 <dt>
 220 <a href="#sec49">Aldous Huxley</a>
 221 </dt>
 222 <dd>
 223 <dl>
 224 <dt>
 225 <a href="#sec50">The Doors of Perception</a>
 226 </dt>
 227 <dt>
 228 <a href="#sec51">Heaven and Hell</a>
 229 </dt>
 230 </dl>
 231 </dd>
 232 <dt>
 233 <a href="#sec52">William James</a>
 234 </dt>
 235 <dd>
 236 <dl>
 237 <dt>
 238 <a href="#sec53">The Varieties of Religious Experience</a>
 239 </dt>
 240 <dt>
 241 <a href="#sec54">The PhD Octopus</a>
 242 </dt>
 243 </dl>
 244 </dd>
 245 <dt>
 246 <a href="#sec55">Henry James</a>
 247 </dt>
 248 <dd>
 249 <dl>
 250 <dt>
 251 <a href="#sec56">The Altar of the Dead</a>
 252 </dt>
 253 </dl>
 254 </dd>
 255 <dt>
 256 <a href="#sec57">Gregor Kiczales</a>
 257 </dt>
 258 <dd>
 259 <dl>
 260 <dt>
 261 <a href="#sec58">The Art of the Metaobject Protocol</a>
 262 </dt>
 263 </dl>
 264 </dd>
 265 <dt>
 266 <a href="#sec59">Søren Kierkegaard</a>
 267 </dt>
 268 <dd>
 269 <dl>
 270 <dt>
 271 <a href="#sec60">Sickness Unto Death</a>
 272 </dt>
 273 <dt>
 274 <a href="#sec61">Either/Or</a>
 275 </dt>
 276 <dt>
 277 <a href="#sec62">Fear and Trembling</a>
 278 </dt>
 279 <dt>
 280 <a href="#sec63">Repetition</a>
 281 </dt>
 282 </dl>
 283 </dd>
 284 <dt>
 285 <a href="#sec64">Alisa Kwitney</a>
 286 </dt>
 287 <dd>
 288 <dl>
 289 <dt>
 290 <a href="#sec65">Destiny: A Chronicle of Deaths Foretold</a>
 291 </dt>
 292 </dl>
 293 </dd>
 294 <dt>
 295 <a href="#sec66">David Lamkins</a>
 296 </dt>
 297 <dd>
 298 <dl>
 299 <dt>
 300 <a href="#sec67">Successful Lisp</a>
 301 </dt>
 302 </dl>
 303 </dd>
 304 <dt>
 305 <a href="#sec68">Mencius</a>
 306 </dt>
 307 <dd>
 308 <dl>
 309 <dt>
 310 <a href="#sec69">Mencius</a>
 311 </dt>
 312 </dl>
 313 </dd>
 314 <dt>
 315 <a href="#sec70">Walter Miller</a>
 316 </dt>
 317 <dd>
 318 <dl>
 319 <dt>
 320 <a href="#sec71">A Canticle for Leibowitz</a>
 321 </dt>
 322 </dl>
 323 </dd>
 324 <dt>
 325 <a href="#sec72">Alan Moore</a>
 326 </dt>
 327 <dd>
 328 <dl>
 329 <dt>
 330 <a href="#sec73">Watchmen</a>
 331 </dt>
 332 <dt>
 333 <a href="#sec74">V for Vendetta</a>
 334 </dt>
 335 </dl>
 336 </dd>
 337 <dt>
 338 <a href="#sec75">Thomas More</a>
 339 </dt>
 340 <dd>
 341 <dl>
 342 <dt>
 343 <a href="#sec76">Utopia</a>
 344 </dt>
 345 </dl>
 346 </dd>
 347 <dt>
 348 <a href="#sec77">Friedrich Nietzsche</a>
 349 </dt>
 350 <dd>
 351 <dl>
 352 <dt>
 353 <a href="#sec78">Beyond Good and Evil</a>
 354 </dt>
 355 <dt>
 356 <a href="#sec79">On the Geneaology of Morals</a>
 357 </dt>
 358 <dt>
 359 <a href="#sec80">Ecce Homo</a>
 360 </dt>
 361 </dl>
 362 </dd>
 363 <dt>
 364 <a href="#sec81">George Orwell</a>
 365 </dt>
 366 <dd>
 367 <dl>
 368 <dt>
 369 <a href="#sec82">1984</a>
 370 </dt>
 371 <dt>
 372 <a href="#sec83">Animal Farm</a>
 373 </dt>
 374 </dl>
 375 </dd>
 376 <dt>
 377 <a href="#sec84">Plato</a>
 378 </dt>
 379 <dd>
 380 <dl>
 381 <dt>
 382 <a href="#sec85">Symposium</a>
 383 </dt>
 384 <dt>
 385 <a href="#sec86">Euthyphro</a>
 386 </dt>
 387 <dt>
 388 <a href="#sec87">Apology</a>
 389 </dt>
 390 <dt>
 391 <a href="#sec88">Crito</a>
 392 </dt>
 393 <dt>
 394 <a href="#sec89">Phaedo</a>
 395 </dt>
 396 <dt>
 397 <a href="#sec90">Protagoras</a>
 398 </dt>
 399 </dl>
 400 </dd>
 401 <dt>
 402 <a href="#sec91">Luke Rhinehardt</a>
 403 </dt>
 404 <dd>
 405 <dl>
 406 <dt>
 407 <a href="#sec92">The Dice Man</a>
 408 </dt>
 409 </dl>
 410 </dd>
 411 <dt>
 412 <a href="#sec93">Neal Stephenson</a>
 413 </dt>
 414 <dd>
 415 <dl>
 416 <dt>
 417 <a href="#sec94">Snow Crash</a>
 418 </dt>
 419 <dt>
 420 <a href="#sec95">Cryptonomicon</a>
 421 </dt>
 422 </dl>
 423 </dd>
 424 <dt>
 425 <a href="#sec96">Bjarne Stroustrup</a>
 426 </dt>
 427 <dd>
 428 <dl>
 429 <dt>
 430 <a href="#sec97">The C++ Programming Language (3rd edition)</a>
 431 </dt>
 432 </dl>
 433 </dd>
 434 <dt>
 435 <a href="#sec98">JRR Tolkien</a>
 436 </dt>
 437 <dd>
 438 <dl>
 439 <dt>
 440 <a href="#sec99">The Lord of the Rings</a>
 441 </dt>
 442 <dt>
 443 <a href="#sec100">The Silmarillion</a>
 444 </dt>
 445 <dt>
 446 <a href="#sec101">The Lost Tales</a>
 447 </dt>
 448 </dl>
 449 </dd>
 450 <dt>
 451 <a href="#sec102">H.G. Wells</a>
 452 </dt>
 453 <dd>
 454 <dl>
 455 <dt>
 456 <a href="#sec103">The Island of Dr Moreau</a>
 457 </dt>
 458 </dl>
 459 </dd>
 460 </dl>
 461 </div>
 462
 463
 464 <!-- Page published by Emacs Muse begins here --><h2><a name="sec1" id="sec1"></a>
 465 Douglas Adams</h2>
 466
 467
 468
 469 <h3><a name="sec2" id="sec2"></a>
 470 Hitchiker's Guide to the Galaxy (collected)</h3>
 471
 472 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">•• </span> (8) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
 473
 474
 475
 476
 477
 478 <h3><a name="sec3" id="sec3"></a>
 479 The Long Dark Tea-Time of the Soul</h3>
 480
 481 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">•••• </span> (6) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
 482
 483
 484
 485
 486
 487
 488 <h2><a name="sec4" id="sec4"></a>
 489 Aeschylus</h2>
 490
 491
 492
 493 <h3><a name="sec5" id="sec5"></a>
 494 Oresteia</h3>
 495
 496 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad"> </span> (10) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
 497
 498
 499
 500
 501
 502 <h3><a name="sec6" id="sec6"></a>
 503 Prometheus Bound</h3>
 504
 505 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> •••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">• </span> (9) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
 506
 507
 508
 509
 510
 511 <h3><a name="sec7" id="sec7"></a>
 512 The Persians</h3>
 513
 514 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">•• </span> (8) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
 515
 516
 517
 518
 519
 520
 521 <h2><a name="sec8" id="sec8"></a>
 522 John Allison</h2>
 523
 524 <p class="first">The author of the rather amazing <a href="http://scarygoround.com">Scary Go Round</a>.
 525 I highly recommend procuring the printed collections; the printing
 526 quality is superb (full color on glossy paper), and the long story
 527 arcs are much easier to read.</p>
 528
 529 <h3><a name="sec9" id="sec9"></a>
 530 Looks, Brains and Everything</h3>
 531
 532 <p><em>Fiction</em></p>
 533
 534
 535
 536
 537
 538 <h3><a name="sec10" id="sec10"></a>
 539 Blame the Sky</h3>
 540
 541 <p><em>Fiction</em></p>
 542
 543
 544
 545
 546
 547 <h3><a name="sec11" id="sec11"></a>
 548 Skellington</h3>
 549
 550 <p><em>Fiction</em></p>
 551
 552
 553
 554
 555
 556 <h3><a name="sec12" id="sec12"></a>
 557 The Retribution Index</h3>
 558
 559 <p><em>Fiction</em></p>
 560
 561
 562
 563
 564
 565 <h3><a name="sec13" id="sec13"></a>
 566 Great Aches</h3>
 567
 568 <p><em>Fiction</em></p>
 569
 570
 571
 572
 573
 574 <h3><a name="sec14" id="sec14"></a>
 575 Ahoy Hoy!</h3>
 576
 577 <p><em>Fiction</em></p>
 578
 579
 580
 581
 582
 583 <h3><a name="sec15" id="sec15"></a>
 584 Heavy Metal Hearts and Flowers</h3>
 585
 586 <p><em>Fiction</em></p>
 587
 588
 589
 590
 591
 592 <h3><a name="sec16" id="sec16"></a>
 593 Ghosts</h3>
 594
 595 <p><em>Fiction</em></p>
 596
 597
 598
 599
 600
 601
 602 <h2><a name="sec17" id="sec17"></a>
 603 Anonymous</h2>
 604
 605
 606
 607 <h3><a name="sec18" id="sec18"></a>
 608 Chymical Wedding of Christian Rosenkreutz</h3>
 609
 610 <p><em>Fiction</em></p>
 611
 612
 613
 614
 615
 616
 617 <h2><a name="sec19" id="sec19"></a>
 618 Aristophanes</h2>
 619
 620
 621
 622 <h3><a name="sec20" id="sec20"></a>
 623 The Frogs</h3>
 624
 625 <p><em>Fiction</em></p>
 626
 627
 628
 629
 630
 631 <h3><a name="sec21" id="sec21"></a>
 632 The Clouds</h3>
 633
 634 <p><em>Fiction</em></p>
 635
 636
 637
 638
 639
 640 <h3><a name="sec22" id="sec22"></a>
 641 Ecclesiazusae</h3>
 642
 643 <p><em>Fiction</em></p>
 644
 645
 646
 647
 648
 649
 650 <h2><a name="sec23" id="sec23"></a>
 651 Aristotle</h2>
 652
 653
 654
 655 <h3><a name="sec24" id="sec24"></a>
 656 Ethics</h3>
 657
 658 <p><em>Nonfiction</em></p>
 659
 660
 661
 662
 663
 664 <h3><a name="sec25" id="sec25"></a>
 665 Categories</h3>
 666
 667 <p><em>Nonfiction</em></p>
 668
 669
 670
 671
 672
 673 <h3><a name="sec26" id="sec26"></a>
 674 Poetics</h3>
 675
 676 <p><em>Nonfiction</em></p>
 677
 678
 679
 680
 681
 682 <h3><a name="sec27" id="sec27"></a>
 683 Rhetoric</h3>
 684
 685 <p><em>Nonfiction</em></p>
 686
 687
 688
 689
 690
 691
 692 <h2><a name="sec28" id="sec28"></a>
 693 Marcus Aurelius</h2>
 694
 695
 696
 697 <h3><a name="sec29" id="sec29"></a>
 698 Meditations</h3>
 699
 700 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••</span><span class="rating-bad">•••••• </span> (4) / <em>Nonfiction</em></p>
 701
 702 <p>At the time, I enjoyed reading this collection of meditations on
 703 Stoic philosophy, and it was a fairly quick read (fifteen minutes a
 704 day over the course of two weeks for me). Nowadays I've read
 705 Epictetus, and I suggest reading his <em>Discourses</em> instead.</p>
 706
 707
 708
 709
 710 <h2><a name="sec30" id="sec30"></a>
 711 William Blake</h2>
 712
 713 <p class="first">Blake is my <a href="William%20Blake.html">favorite</a> of the English poets. His
 714 unique use of relief etching and watercoloring makes for very
 715 interesting Illuminated works. There is a very high quality
 716 <a href="http://blakearchive.org">complete archive of Blake's works</a> online
 717 with high resolution plate scans and full transcriptions among other
 718 things.</p>
 719
 720 <h3><a name="sec31" id="sec31"></a>
 721 The Four Zoas</h3>
 722
 723 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad"> </span> (10) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
 724
 725 <p>The unfinished manuscript of Blake's longest apocalypse. The
 726 Four Zoas divide from Albion and rage through the ages of dismal woe
 727 to bring about the end of the cycle of Ulro and restore the cycle of
 728 Beulah.</p>
 729
 730
 731
 732 <h3><a name="sec32" id="sec32"></a>
 733 Jerusalem</h3>
 734
 735 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad"> </span> (10) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
 736
 737 <p>The finest of Blake's Illuminated works.</p>
 738
 739
 740
 741
 742 <h2><a name="sec33" id="sec33"></a>
 743 Mike Carey</h2>
 744
 745
 746
 747 <h3><a name="sec34" id="sec34"></a>
 748 Lucifer (series)</h3>
 749
 750 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">•••• </span> (6) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
 751
 752 <p>Of the <em>Sandman</em> spinoffs, <em>Lucifer</em> stands out as the best for
 753 the first half, but then the writer appears to take on far too great a
 754 task, and, with the introduction of some disagreeable character
 755 relations, fails to execute the story as well as it could have
 756 been. Still, it was worth reading to the end even though most of the
 757 stories after issue 35 or so were merely ok. If you like Kierkegaard I
 758 suggest issues 2, 3, and 62&mdash;they show the form of the incommensurable
 759 relation of the single individual to the absolute perfectly.</p>
 760
 761
 762
 763
 764 <h2><a name="sec35" id="sec35"></a>
 765 Confucius</h2>
 766
 767
 768
 769 <h3><a name="sec36" id="sec36"></a>
 770 Analects</h3>
 771
 772 <p><em>Nonfiction</em></p>
 773
 774
 775
 776
 777
 778
 779 <h2><a name="sec37" id="sec37"></a>
 780 Neil Gaiman</h2>
 781
 782
 783
 784 <h3><a name="sec38" id="sec38"></a>
 785 The Sandman (series)</h3>
 786
 787 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad"> </span> (10) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
 788
 789 <p>Perhaps the best comic book series of all time; I would say <em>The
 790 Sandman</em> as a whole ranks higher than anything even Alan Moore has
 791 written.</p>
 792
 793
 794
 795 <h3><a name="sec39" id="sec39"></a>
 796 Good Omens</h3>
 797
 798 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">•• </span> (8) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
 799
 800 <p>A friend of a friend decided one evening that I needed to read
 801 so-called <em>normal people books</em>, and so she lent me <em>Good Omens</em>. It
 802 was an enjoyable read and unearthed vague memories of comic book
 803 magazines I read when I was small and the name <em>Sandman</em>; thus through
 804 one book I found something far greater.</p>
 805
 806
 807
 808
 809 <h2><a name="sec40" id="sec40"></a>
 810 John Taylor Gatto</h2>
 811
 812 <p class="first">Former teacher and now author-activist.</p>
 813
 814 <h3><a name="sec41" id="sec41"></a>
 815 Underground History of American Education</h3>
 816
 817 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> •••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">• </span> (9) / <em>Nonfiction</em></p>
 818
 819 <p>An interesting <em>underground</em> history of the American education
 820 system. Available
 821 <a href="http://www.johntaylorgatto.com/underground/">online for free</a>.</p>
 822
 823
 824
 825
 826 <h2><a name="sec42" id="sec42"></a>
 827 Kahlil Gibran</h2>
 828
 829 <p class="first">Kahlil Gibran is fairly interesting; his earlier works do not
 830 agree with my æsthetic sense (blah blah), but <em>The Madman</em> onward are
 831 all rather nice. A few of his works are
 832 <a href="http://leb.net/~mira/">online</a>, but I recommend scouting used book
 833 stores for old hardcover editions. The (late 90s onward at least)
 834 <em>hardcover</em> versions from <em>Alfred A. Knopf</em> are in fact permabound
 835 paperbacks with a hardcasing, and are of seriously inferior quality to
 836 the editions from the 50s and 60s (and cost quite a bit more,
 837 naturally).</p>
 838
 839 <h3><a name="sec43" id="sec43"></a>
 840 A Tear and a Smile</h3>
 841
 842 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> •••</span><span class="rating-bad">••••••• </span> (3) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
 843
 844 <p>One of Kahlil Gibran's earlier works, I did not much like <em>A
 845 Tear and a Smile</em> excepting the last poem (&quot;A Poet's Voice&quot;).</p>
 846
 847
 848
 849 <h3><a name="sec44" id="sec44"></a>
 850 The Prophet</h3>
 851
 852 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> •••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">• </span> (9) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
 853
 854
 855
 856
 857
 858 <h3><a name="sec45" id="sec45"></a>
 859 Sand and Foam</h3>
 860
 861 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> •••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">••• </span> (7) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
 862
 863 <p>An interesting little book of aphorisms.</p>
 864
 865
 866
 867 <h3><a name="sec46" id="sec46"></a>
 868 The Madman</h3>
 869
 870 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">•• </span> (8) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
 871
 872
 873
 874
 875
 876
 877 <h2><a name="sec47" id="sec47"></a>
 878 Homer</h2>
 879
 880
 881
 882 <h3><a name="sec48" id="sec48"></a>
 883 The Odyssey</h3>
 884
 885 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad"> </span> (10) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
 886
 887
 888
 889
 890
 891
 892 <h2><a name="sec49" id="sec49"></a>
 893 Aldous Huxley</h2>
 894
 895 <p class="first">Perhaps the most overrated modern writer. Other people have written
 896 everything he has to write better and many years before he got around
 897 to it.</p>
 898
 899 <h3><a name="sec50" id="sec50"></a>
 900 The Doors of Perception</h3>
 901
 902 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> </span><span class="rating-bad">•••••••••• </span> (0) / <em>Nonfiction</em></p>
 903
 904 <p>Huxley stains the name of Blake by naming this horrible
 905 pseudo-scientific and pseudo-poetic essay after a line from <em>The
 906 Marriage of Heaven and Hell</em>. Subjectivity and objectivity are
 907 incommensurable; his attempt and being subjectively objective is
 908 utterly worthless.</p>
 909
 910
 911
 912 <h3><a name="sec51" id="sec51"></a>
 913 Heaven and Hell</h3>
 914
 915 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> </span><span class="rating-bad">•••••••••• </span> (0) / <em>Nonfiction</em></p>
 916
 917 <p>Blah blah LSD blah blah Mushrooms blah blah Peyote blah blah I'm
 918 Aldous Huxley I'm a pretentious jerk. Don't bother.</p>
 919
 920
 921
 922
 923 <h2><a name="sec52" id="sec52"></a>
 924 William James</h2>
 925
 926
 927
 928 <h3><a name="sec53" id="sec53"></a>
 929 The Varieties of Religious Experience</h3>
 930
 931 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> •••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">••• </span> (7) / <em>Nonfiction</em></p>
 932
 933 <p><a href="William%20James%20-%20The%20Varieties%20of%20Religious%20Experience.html">A partially finished extended summary</a></p>
 934
 935
 936
 937 <h3><a name="sec54" id="sec54"></a>
 938 The PhD Octopus</h3>
 939
 940 <p><em>Nonfiction</em></p>
 941
 942 <blockquote>
 943 <p class="quoted">
 944 America is thus as a nation rapidly drifting towards a state of things
 945 in which no man of science or letters will be accounted respectable
 946 unless some kind of badge or diploma is stamped upon him, and in which
 947 bare personality will be a mark of outcast estate.  It seems to me high
 948 time to rouse ourselves to consciousness, and to cast a critical eye
 949 upon this decidedly grotesque tendency.  Other nations suffer terribly
 950 from the Mandarin disease.  Are we doomed to suffer like the rest?</p>
 951
 952 </blockquote>
 953
 954 <p><a href="William%20James%20-%20The%20PhD%20Octopus.html">Full Text</a></p>
 955
 956
 957
 958
 959 <h2><a name="sec55" id="sec55"></a>
 960 Henry James</h2>
 961
 962 <p class="first">The novelist brother of William James; I've not read many (read:
 963 one) of his books, but what I did was decent.</p>
 964
 965 <h3><a name="sec56" id="sec56"></a>
 966 The Altar of the Dead</h3>
 967
 968 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> •••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">••• </span> (7) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
 969
 970 <p>A short novella about a man who maintained an altar in a church
 971 for all of his lost loved ones on the surface, but something a bit
 972 more beneath.</p>
 973
 974
 975
 976
 977 <h2><a name="sec57" id="sec57"></a>
 978 Gregor Kiczales</h2>
 979
 980
 981
 982 <h3><a name="sec58" id="sec58"></a>
 983 The Art of the Metaobject Protocol</h3>
 984
 985 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad"> </span> (10) / <em>Nonfiction</em></p>
 986
 987 <p>AMOP is useful as a reference to the CLOS MOP (although less so with
 988 the online MOP spec), but the true value of the book lies in the first
 989 half of the book. It presents the design of the CLOS MOP through a
 990 series of revisions that fix limitations of earlier implementations
 991 and gradually work toward a generic and well designed MOP for
 992 CLOS. Through that process one is made more aware of a few general
 993 object protocol design skills, and gains insight into how to cleanly
 994 make mapping decisions customizable.</p>
 995
 996
 997
 998
 999 <h2><a name="sec59" id="sec59"></a>
1000 Søren Kierkegaard</h2>
1001
1002 <p class="first">Kierkegaard was a master of style and philosophy; his writing is
1003 interesting even if one finds the theistic extentialism espoused
1004 disagreeable.</p>
1005
1006 <h3><a name="sec60" id="sec60"></a>
1007 Sickness Unto Death</h3>
1008
1009 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad"> </span> (10) / <em>Nonfiction</em></p>
1010
1011 <p>I purchased this when I was looking through books at a store after
1012 being unable to find the book I really wanted, and I must say that it
1013 was better for me to have found this one.</p>
1014
1015 <p>Contained within is a beautiful analysis of despair in the context of
1016 Christianity (really theism in general). Even if the argument offends,
1017 the presentation cannot. The dialectical nature of despair is
1018 reflected in every aspect of the work, and the method of presentation
1019 forces reflection.</p>
1020
1021
1022
1023 <h3><a name="sec61" id="sec61"></a>
1024 Either/Or</h3>
1025
1026 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad"> </span> (10) / <em>Nonfiction</em></p>
1027
1028 <p>Composed of two portions, <em>Either/Or</em> is a rather lengthy but
1029 rewarding read. The first book is a series of essays and a diary of a
1030 young esthetician; the second is a pair of long letters from an older
1031 ethicist friend to this esthetician. You are then left to resolve the
1032 conflict between the views.</p>
1033
1034
1035
1036 <h3><a name="sec62" id="sec62"></a>
1037 Fear and Trembling</h3>
1038
1039 <p><em>Nonfiction</em></p>
1040
1041 <p>An interesting dialectical lyric contrasting Despair and Faith.</p>
1042
1043
1044
1045 <h3><a name="sec63" id="sec63"></a>
1046 Repetition</h3>
1047
1048 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad"> </span> (10) / <em>Nonfiction</em></p>
1049
1050 <p>He who despairs of esthetic repetition gets none; he who despairs
1051 of ethical repetition receieves the esthetic. Is it true then that no
1052 repetition exists? Is transition all one can hope for?</p>
1053
1054
1055
1056
1057 <h2><a name="sec64" id="sec64"></a>
1058 Alisa Kwitney</h2>
1059
1060
1061
1062 <h3><a name="sec65" id="sec65"></a>
1063 Destiny: A Chronicle of Deaths Foretold</h3>
1064
1065 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">•• </span> (8) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
1066
1067
1068
1069
1070
1071
1072 <h2><a name="sec66" id="sec66"></a>
1073 David Lamkins</h2>
1074
1075
1076
1077 <h3><a name="sec67" id="sec67"></a>
1078 Successful Lisp</h3>
1079
1080 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">•• </span> (8) / <em>Nonfiction</em></p>
1081
1082 <p>After learning Scheme, I read <em>Successful Lisp</em> and was able to
1083 pick up Common Lisp fairly easily.</p>
1084
1085
1086
1087
1088 <h2><a name="sec68" id="sec68"></a>
1089 Mencius</h2>
1090
1091
1092
1093 <h3><a name="sec69" id="sec69"></a>
1094 Mencius</h3>
1095
1096 <p><em>Nonfiction</em></p>
1097
1098
1099
1100
1101
1102
1103 <h2><a name="sec70" id="sec70"></a>
1104 Walter Miller</h2>
1105
1106
1107
1108 <h3><a name="sec71" id="sec71"></a>
1109 A Canticle for Leibowitz</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
1118 <h2><a name="sec72" id="sec72"></a>
1119 Alan Moore</h2>
1120
1121
1122
1123 <h3><a name="sec73" id="sec73"></a>
1124 Watchmen</h3>
1125
1126 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">•• </span> (8) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
1127
1128
1129
1130
1131
1132 <h3><a name="sec74" id="sec74"></a>
1133 V for Vendetta</h3>
1134
1135 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad"> </span> (10) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
1136
1137
1138
1139
1140
1141
1142 <h2><a name="sec75" id="sec75"></a>
1143 Thomas More</h2>
1144
1145
1146
1147 <h3><a name="sec76" id="sec76"></a>
1148 Utopia</h3>
1149
1150 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> •••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">••• </span> (7) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
1151
1152 <p>I read most of Utopia in high school with the TI-89 ebook reader, but
1153 the way the book was split up made it a bit difficult to grasp the
1154 overall structure. I found a copy at a used book store one day, and so
1155 I read it again, and found it much more comprehensible. It is a quick
1156 read, and decent piece of literature. The interesting social system
1157 espoused resembles resembles state communism (even if perhaps as a
1158 negative ideal), but with an strange blend of 14th century European
1159 social customs.</p>
1160
1161
1162
1163
1164 <h2><a name="sec77" id="sec77"></a>
1165 Friedrich Nietzsche</h2>
1166
1167 <p class="first">A bit acerbic and esoteric, Nietzsche is for me a good <em>secular</em>
1168 counterpart to Kierkegaard's theistic philosophy. Nietzsche's
1169 polemical works raise important questions for anyone who reads works
1170 on ethics. As such it is a shame that he has gotten a bad reputation
1171 by being read by far too many angsty teenagers who see (and relay)
1172 only Nietzsche the asshole rather than Nietzsche the master of the
1173 polemic.</p>
1174
1175 <h3><a name="sec78" id="sec78"></a>
1176 Beyond Good and Evil</h3>
1177
1178 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">•• </span> (8) / <em>Nonfiction</em></p>
1179
1180 <p>A somewhat more comprehensible, if a bit less aesthetically
1181 pleasing, presentation of much of the philosophy found in <em>Thus Spoke
1182 Zarathustra</em> in the negative form. The final chapters are very
1183 important (not to detract from the value of the rest of the work) if
1184 one wishes to understand <em>On the Genealogy of Morals</em>.</p>
1185
1186
1187
1188 <h3><a name="sec79" id="sec79"></a>
1189 On the Geneaology of Morals</h3>
1190
1191 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> •••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">• </span> (9) / <em>Nonfiction</em></p>
1192
1193 <p><em>On the Geneaology of Morals</em> is a wonderful book of three
1194 polemical essays on the origin of moral/ethical valuations, and the
1195 blindness of modern philosphers whose very thinking is tainted by
1196 these valuations unknowingly.</p>
1197
1198
1199
1200 <h3><a name="sec80" id="sec80"></a>
1201 Ecce Homo</h3>
1202
1203 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> •••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">••• </span> (7) / <em>Nonfiction</em></p>
1204
1205 <p><em>Ecce Homo</em> is Nietzsche's very strange autobiography and
1206 explanation of his own works. At points it is clear that it could have
1207 used a bit more editing (prevented by Nietzsche ... falling into a
1208 catatonic state and all), but is still a very useful book to read as
1209 Nietzsche explains the overall structure of his works.</p>
1210
1211
1212
1213
1214 <h2><a name="sec81" id="sec81"></a>
1215 George Orwell</h2>
1216
1217
1218
1219 <h3><a name="sec82" id="sec82"></a>
1220 1984</h3>
1221
1222 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad"> </span> (10) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
1223
1224
1225
1226
1227
1228 <h3><a name="sec83" id="sec83"></a>
1229 Animal Farm</h3>
1230
1231 <p><em>Fiction</em></p>
1232
1233
1234
1235
1236
1237
1238 <h2><a name="sec84" id="sec84"></a>
1239 Plato</h2>
1240
1241
1242
1243 <h3><a name="sec85" id="sec85"></a>
1244 Symposium</h3>
1245
1246 <p><em>Fiction</em></p>
1247
1248
1249
1250
1251
1252 <h3><a name="sec86" id="sec86"></a>
1253 Euthyphro</h3>
1254
1255 <p><em>Fiction</em></p>
1256
1257
1258
1259
1260
1261 <h3><a name="sec87" id="sec87"></a>
1262 Apology</h3>
1263
1264 <p><em>Nonfiction</em></p>
1265
1266
1267
1268
1269
1270 <h3><a name="sec88" id="sec88"></a>
1271 Crito</h3>
1272
1273 <p><em>Fiction</em></p>
1274
1275
1276
1277
1278
1279 <h3><a name="sec89" id="sec89"></a>
1280 Phaedo</h3>
1281
1282 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad"> </span> (10) / <em>Nonfiction</em></p>
1283
1284
1285
1286
1287
1288 <h3><a name="sec90" id="sec90"></a>
1289 Protagoras</h3>
1290
1291 <p><em>Fiction</em></p>
1292
1293
1294
1295
1296
1297
1298 <h2><a name="sec91" id="sec91"></a>
1299 Luke Rhinehardt</h2>
1300
1301
1302
1303 <h3><a name="sec92" id="sec92"></a>
1304 The Dice Man</h3>
1305
1306 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> •••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">••• </span> (7) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
1307
1308 <blockquote>
1309 <p class="quoted">
1310 And it's his illusions about what
1311 constitutes the real world which are
1312 inhibiting him...
1313 His reality, his reason, his society
1314 ...these are what must be destroyed</p>
1315
1316 </blockquote>
1317
1318 <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
1319 this book; at worst it would be a waste of time. Much reward was found
1320 in this random stab in the dark. The book is framed as an
1321 autobiography of the author as a psychoanalyst, and his progression
1322 through life as a Dice Man after deciding to live his life through
1323 random chance.</p>
1324
1325 <p>The style, plot, and content are equally neurotic; part comedy, part
1326 attack on psychoanalysis, and part deep philosophy. It was often
1327 difficult to put down, and was read in under a week of spare time.</p>
1328
1329
1330
1331
1332 <h2><a name="sec93" id="sec93"></a>
1333 Neal Stephenson</h2>
1334
1335
1336
1337 <h3><a name="sec94" id="sec94"></a>
1338 Snow Crash</h3>
1339
1340 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> •••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">• </span> (9) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
1341
1342 <p>As one must read the <em>Bible</em> to understand English literature, so one
1343 must read <em>Snow Crash</em> today to be a nerd. In the realm of modern pop
1344 fiction this is one of the better books I've read; it was devoured in
1345 a mere four nights. Neal Stepheson may not be Milton, but he does come
1346 up with enganging tales. <em>Snow Crash</em> has a nice undertone of (quite
1347 accurate) political and social commentary that makes it worth reading
1348 as more than mere cyberpunk fiction.</p>
1349
1350
1351
1352 <h3><a name="sec95" id="sec95"></a>
1353 Cryptonomicon</h3>
1354
1355 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">•• </span> (8) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
1356
1357 <p>I read <em>Cryptonomicon</em> when it was new, and at the time I thought it was
1358 good. It could have lost a hundred or so pages without detracting from
1359 the plot, but it was easy reading and didn't take very long to
1360 finish. The story was enganging, and the continual switching between
1361 the 1940s and present day slowly unravelled the tale in a nice way.</p>
1362
1363 <p>I'd still have to recommend <em>Snow Crash</em> if one wished to read only one
1364 Stephenson novel.</p>
1365
1366
1367
1368
1369 <h2><a name="sec96" id="sec96"></a>
1370 Bjarne Stroustrup</h2>
1371
1372
1373
1374 <h3><a name="sec97" id="sec97"></a>
1375 The C++ Programming Language (3rd edition)</h3>
1376
1377 <p><em>Nonfiction</em></p>
1378
1379 <p>Once upon a time I was fifteen and I read this book. It was more
1380 or less what taught me how to write programs just large enough to do
1381 useful things, and so shall forever be remembered by me. A year and a
1382 half later I stumbled upon a little language called Scheme and fell
1383 down the rabbit hole.</p>
1384
1385
1386
1387
1388 <h2><a name="sec98" id="sec98"></a>
1389 JRR Tolkien</h2>
1390
1391
1392
1393 <h3><a name="sec99" id="sec99"></a>
1394 The Lord of the Rings</h3>
1395
1396 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> •••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">• </span> (9) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
1397
1398
1399
1400
1401
1402 <h3><a name="sec100" id="sec100"></a>
1403 The Silmarillion</h3>
1404
1405 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad"> </span> (10) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
1406
1407
1408
1409
1410
1411 <h3><a name="sec101" id="sec101"></a>
1412 The Lost Tales</h3>
1413
1414 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> •••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">••• </span> (7) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
1415
1416
1417
1418
1419
1420
1421 <h2><a name="sec102" id="sec102"></a>
1422 H.G. Wells</h2>
1423
1424
1425
1426 <h3><a name="sec103" id="sec103"></a>
1427 The Island of Dr Moreau</h3>
1428
1429 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> •••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">••• </span> (7) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
1430
1431
1432
1433   <!-- Page published by Emacs Muse ends here -->
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1457   </p>
1458
1459 <p class="cke-footer">thehurdguy: LOL you'll end up being like that urban myth
1460 thehurdguy: the guy that thinks he's orange juice
1461 thehurdguy: I'll be like "dude, I know a lisp programmer who did
1462             so much acid, he thinks he's an empty list..."
1463 </p>
1464 <p class="cke-timestamp">Last Modified:
1465     January 26, 2009</p>
1466   </body>
1467 </html>