Book List.html

   1 <?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8" ?>
   2 <!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Strict//EN"
   3     "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-strict.dtd">
   4 <html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">
   5   <head>
   6     <title>A Not So Fancy Listing of Books</title>
   7     <meta name="generator" content="muse.el" />
   8     <meta http-equiv="Content-Type"
   9           content="text/html; charset=utf-8" />
  10     <link href="http://feeds.unknownlamer.org/rss/site-updates"
  11           rel="alternate" type="application/rss+xml" title="Updates Feed" />
  12
  13 <link rel="stylesheet" href="default.css" />
  14   </head>
  15   <body>
  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">John Milton</a>
 326 </dt>
 327 <dd>
 328 <dl>
 329 <dt>
 330 <a href="#sec73">Paradise Lost</a>
 331 </dt>
 332 </dl>
 333 </dd>
 334 <dt>
 335 <a href="#sec74">Alan Moore</a>
 336 </dt>
 337 <dd>
 338 <dl>
 339 <dt>
 340 <a href="#sec75">Watchmen</a>
 341 </dt>
 342 <dt>
 343 <a href="#sec76">V for Vendetta</a>
 344 </dt>
 345 </dl>
 346 </dd>
 347 <dt>
 348 <a href="#sec77">Thomas More</a>
 349 </dt>
 350 <dd>
 351 <dl>
 352 <dt>
 353 <a href="#sec78">Utopia</a>
 354 </dt>
 355 </dl>
 356 </dd>
 357 <dt>
 358 <a href="#sec79">Friedrich Nietzsche</a>
 359 </dt>
 360 <dd>
 361 <dl>
 362 <dt>
 363 <a href="#sec80">Thus Spoke Zarathustra</a>
 364 </dt>
 365 <dt>
 366 <a href="#sec81">Beyond Good and Evil</a>
 367 </dt>
 368 <dt>
 369 <a href="#sec82">On the Geneaology of Morals</a>
 370 </dt>
 371 <dt>
 372 <a href="#sec83">Ecce Homo</a>
 373 </dt>
 374 </dl>
 375 </dd>
 376 <dt>
 377 <a href="#sec84">George Orwell</a>
 378 </dt>
 379 <dd>
 380 <dl>
 381 <dt>
 382 <a href="#sec85">1984</a>
 383 </dt>
 384 <dt>
 385 <a href="#sec86">Animal Farm</a>
 386 </dt>
 387 </dl>
 388 </dd>
 389 <dt>
 390 <a href="#sec87">Plato</a>
 391 </dt>
 392 <dd>
 393 <dl>
 394 <dt>
 395 <a href="#sec88">Symposium</a>
 396 </dt>
 397 <dt>
 398 <a href="#sec89">Euthyphro</a>
 399 </dt>
 400 <dt>
 401 <a href="#sec90">Apology</a>
 402 </dt>
 403 <dt>
 404 <a href="#sec91">Crito</a>
 405 </dt>
 406 <dt>
 407 <a href="#sec92">Phaedo</a>
 408 </dt>
 409 <dt>
 410 <a href="#sec93">Protagoras</a>
 411 </dt>
 412 </dl>
 413 </dd>
 414 <dt>
 415 <a href="#sec94">Luke Rhinehardt</a>
 416 </dt>
 417 <dd>
 418 <dl>
 419 <dt>
 420 <a href="#sec95">The Dice Man</a>
 421 </dt>
 422 </dl>
 423 </dd>
 424 <dt>
 425 <a href="#sec96">Neal Stephenson</a>
 426 </dt>
 427 <dd>
 428 <dl>
 429 <dt>
 430 <a href="#sec97">Snow Crash</a>
 431 </dt>
 432 <dt>
 433 <a href="#sec98">Cryptonomicon</a>
 434 </dt>
 435 </dl>
 436 </dd>
 437 <dt>
 438 <a href="#sec99">Bjarne Stroustrup</a>
 439 </dt>
 440 <dd>
 441 <dl>
 442 <dt>
 443 <a href="#sec100">The C++ Programming Language (3rd edition)</a>
 444 </dt>
 445 </dl>
 446 </dd>
 447 <dt>
 448 <a href="#sec101">JRR Tolkien</a>
 449 </dt>
 450 <dd>
 451 <dl>
 452 <dt>
 453 <a href="#sec102">The Lord of the Rings</a>
 454 </dt>
 455 <dt>
 456 <a href="#sec103">The Silmarillion</a>
 457 </dt>
 458 <dt>
 459 <a href="#sec104">The Lost Tales</a>
 460 </dt>
 461 </dl>
 462 </dd>
 463 <dt>
 464 <a href="#sec105">H.G. Wells</a>
 465 </dt>
 466 <dd>
 467 <dl>
 468 <dt>
 469 <a href="#sec106">The Island of Dr Moreau</a>
 470 </dt>
 471 </dl>
 472 </dd>
 473 <dt>
 474 <a href="#sec107">Yevgeny Zamyatin</a>
 475 </dt>
 476 <dd>
 477 <dl>
 478 <dt>
 479 <a href="#sec108">We</a>
 480 </dt>
 481 </dl>
 482 </dd>
 483 </dl>
 484 </div>
 485
 486
 487 <!-- Page published by Emacs Muse begins here --><h2><a name="sec1" id="sec1"></a>
 488 Douglas Adams</h2>
 489
 490
 491
 492 <h3><a name="sec2" id="sec2"></a>
 493 Hitchiker's Guide to the Galaxy (collected)</h3>
 494
 495 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">•• </span> (8) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
 496
 497
 498
 499
 500
 501 <h3><a name="sec3" id="sec3"></a>
 502 The Long Dark Tea-Time of the Soul</h3>
 503
 504 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">•••• </span> (6) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
 505
 506
 507
 508
 509
 510
 511 <h2><a name="sec4" id="sec4"></a>
 512 Aeschylus</h2>
 513
 514
 515
 516 <h3><a name="sec5" id="sec5"></a>
 517 Oresteia</h3>
 518
 519 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad"> </span> (10) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
 520
 521
 522
 523
 524
 525 <h3><a name="sec6" id="sec6"></a>
 526 Prometheus Bound</h3>
 527
 528 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> •••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">• </span> (9) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
 529
 530
 531
 532
 533
 534 <h3><a name="sec7" id="sec7"></a>
 535 The Persians</h3>
 536
 537 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">•• </span> (8) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
 538
 539
 540
 541
 542
 543
 544 <h2><a name="sec8" id="sec8"></a>
 545 John Allison</h2>
 546
 547 <p class="first">The author of the rather amazing <a href="http://scarygoround.com">Scary Go Round</a>.
 548 I highly recommend procuring the printed collections; the printing
 549 quality is superb (full color on glossy paper), and the long story
 550 arcs are much easier to read.</p>
 551
 552 <h3><a name="sec9" id="sec9"></a>
 553 Looks, Brains and Everything</h3>
 554
 555 <p><em>Fiction</em></p>
 556
 557
 558
 559
 560
 561 <h3><a name="sec10" id="sec10"></a>
 562 Blame the Sky</h3>
 563
 564 <p><em>Fiction</em></p>
 565
 566
 567
 568
 569
 570 <h3><a name="sec11" id="sec11"></a>
 571 Skellington</h3>
 572
 573 <p><em>Fiction</em></p>
 574
 575
 576
 577
 578
 579 <h3><a name="sec12" id="sec12"></a>
 580 The Retribution Index</h3>
 581
 582 <p><em>Fiction</em></p>
 583
 584
 585
 586
 587
 588 <h3><a name="sec13" id="sec13"></a>
 589 Great Aches</h3>
 590
 591 <p><em>Fiction</em></p>
 592
 593
 594
 595
 596
 597 <h3><a name="sec14" id="sec14"></a>
 598 Ahoy Hoy!</h3>
 599
 600 <p><em>Fiction</em></p>
 601
 602
 603
 604
 605
 606 <h3><a name="sec15" id="sec15"></a>
 607 Heavy Metal Hearts and Flowers</h3>
 608
 609 <p><em>Fiction</em></p>
 610
 611
 612
 613
 614
 615 <h3><a name="sec16" id="sec16"></a>
 616 Ghosts</h3>
 617
 618 <p><em>Fiction</em></p>
 619
 620
 621
 622
 623
 624
 625 <h2><a name="sec17" id="sec17"></a>
 626 Anonymous</h2>
 627
 628
 629
 630 <h3><a name="sec18" id="sec18"></a>
 631 Chymical Wedding of Christian Rosenkreutz</h3>
 632
 633 <p><em>Fiction</em></p>
 634
 635
 636
 637
 638
 639
 640 <h2><a name="sec19" id="sec19"></a>
 641 Aristophanes</h2>
 642
 643
 644
 645 <h3><a name="sec20" id="sec20"></a>
 646 The Frogs</h3>
 647
 648 <p><em>Fiction</em></p>
 649
 650
 651
 652
 653
 654 <h3><a name="sec21" id="sec21"></a>
 655 The Clouds</h3>
 656
 657 <p><em>Fiction</em></p>
 658
 659
 660
 661
 662
 663 <h3><a name="sec22" id="sec22"></a>
 664 Ecclesiazusae</h3>
 665
 666 <p><em>Fiction</em></p>
 667
 668
 669
 670
 671
 672
 673 <h2><a name="sec23" id="sec23"></a>
 674 Aristotle</h2>
 675
 676
 677
 678 <h3><a name="sec24" id="sec24"></a>
 679 Ethics</h3>
 680
 681 <p><em>Nonfiction</em></p>
 682
 683
 684
 685
 686
 687 <h3><a name="sec25" id="sec25"></a>
 688 Categories</h3>
 689
 690 <p><em>Nonfiction</em></p>
 691
 692
 693
 694
 695
 696 <h3><a name="sec26" id="sec26"></a>
 697 Poetics</h3>
 698
 699 <p><em>Nonfiction</em></p>
 700
 701
 702
 703
 704
 705 <h3><a name="sec27" id="sec27"></a>
 706 Rhetoric</h3>
 707
 708 <p><em>Nonfiction</em></p>
 709
 710
 711
 712
 713
 714
 715 <h2><a name="sec28" id="sec28"></a>
 716 Marcus Aurelius</h2>
 717
 718
 719
 720 <h3><a name="sec29" id="sec29"></a>
 721 Meditations</h3>
 722
 723 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••</span><span class="rating-bad">•••••• </span> (4) / <em>Nonfiction</em></p>
 724
 725 <p>At the time, I enjoyed reading this collection of meditations on
 726 Stoic philosophy, and it was a fairly quick read (fifteen minutes a
 727 day over the course of two weeks for me). Nowadays I've read
 728 Epictetus, and I suggest reading his <em>Discourses</em> instead.</p>
 729
 730
 731
 732
 733 <h2><a name="sec30" id="sec30"></a>
 734 William Blake</h2>
 735
 736 <p class="first">Blake is my <a href="William%20Blake.html">favorite</a> of the English poets. His
 737 unique use of relief etching and watercoloring makes for very
 738 interesting Illuminated works. There is a very high quality
 739 <a href="http://blakearchive.org">complete archive of Blake's works</a> online
 740 with high resolution plate scans and full transcriptions among other
 741 things.</p>
 742
 743 <h3><a name="sec31" id="sec31"></a>
 744 The Four Zoas</h3>
 745
 746 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad"> </span> (10) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
 747
 748 <p>The unfinished manuscript of Blake's longest apocalypse. The
 749 Four Zoas divide from Albion and rage through the ages of dismal woe
 750 to bring about the end of the cycle of Ulro and restore the cycle of
 751 Beulah.</p>
 752
 753
 754
 755 <h3><a name="sec32" id="sec32"></a>
 756 Jerusalem</h3>
 757
 758 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad"> </span> (10) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
 759
 760 <p>The finest of Blake's Illuminated works.</p>
 761
 762
 763
 764
 765 <h2><a name="sec33" id="sec33"></a>
 766 Mike Carey</h2>
 767
 768
 769
 770 <h3><a name="sec34" id="sec34"></a>
 771 Lucifer (series)</h3>
 772
 773 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">•••• </span> (6) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
 774
 775 <p>Of the <em>Sandman</em> spinoffs, <em>Lucifer</em> stands out as the best for
 776 the first half, but then the writer appears to take on far too great a
 777 task, and, with the introduction of some disagreeable character
 778 relations, fails to execute the story as well as it could have
 779 been. Still, it was worth reading to the end even though most of the
 780 stories after issue 35 or so were merely ok. If you like Kierkegaard I
 781 suggest issues 2, 3, and 62&mdash;they show the form of the incommensurable
 782 relation of the single individual to the absolute perfectly.</p>
 783
 784
 785
 786
 787 <h2><a name="sec35" id="sec35"></a>
 788 Confucius</h2>
 789
 790
 791
 792 <h3><a name="sec36" id="sec36"></a>
 793 Analects</h3>
 794
 795 <p><em>Nonfiction</em></p>
 796
 797
 798
 799
 800
 801
 802 <h2><a name="sec37" id="sec37"></a>
 803 Neil Gaiman</h2>
 804
 805
 806
 807 <h3><a name="sec38" id="sec38"></a>
 808 The Sandman (series)</h3>
 809
 810 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad"> </span> (10) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
 811
 812 <p>Perhaps the best comic book series of all time; I would say <em>The
 813 Sandman</em> as a whole ranks higher than anything even Alan Moore has
 814 written.</p>
 815
 816
 817
 818 <h3><a name="sec39" id="sec39"></a>
 819 Good Omens</h3>
 820
 821 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">•• </span> (8) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
 822
 823 <p>A friend of a friend decided one evening that I needed to read
 824 so-called <em>normal people books</em>, and so she lent me <em>Good Omens</em>. It
 825 was an enjoyable read and unearthed vague memories of comic book
 826 magazines I read when I was small and the name <em>Sandman</em>; thus through
 827 one book I found something far greater.</p>
 828
 829
 830
 831
 832 <h2><a name="sec40" id="sec40"></a>
 833 John Taylor Gatto</h2>
 834
 835 <p class="first">Former teacher and now author-activist.</p>
 836
 837 <h3><a name="sec41" id="sec41"></a>
 838 Underground History of American Education</h3>
 839
 840 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> •••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">• </span> (9) / <em>Nonfiction</em></p>
 841
 842 <p>An interesting <em>underground</em> history of the American education
 843 system. Available
 844 <a href="http://www.johntaylorgatto.com/underground/">online for free</a>.</p>
 845
 846
 847
 848
 849 <h2><a name="sec42" id="sec42"></a>
 850 Kahlil Gibran</h2>
 851
 852 <p class="first">Kahlil Gibran is fairly interesting; his earlier works do not
 853 agree with my æsthetic sense (blah blah), but <em>The Madman</em> onward are
 854 all rather nice. A few of his works are
 855 <a href="http://leb.net/~mira/">online</a>, but I recommend scouting used book
 856 stores for old hardcover editions. The (late 90s onward at least)
 857 <em>hardcover</em> versions from <em>Alfred A. Knopf</em> are in fact permabound
 858 paperbacks with a hardcasing, and are of seriously inferior quality to
 859 the editions from the 50s and 60s (and cost quite a bit more,
 860 naturally).</p>
 861
 862 <h3><a name="sec43" id="sec43"></a>
 863 A Tear and a Smile</h3>
 864
 865 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> •••</span><span class="rating-bad">••••••• </span> (3) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
 866
 867 <p>One of Kahlil Gibran's earlier works, I did not much like <em>A
 868 Tear and a Smile</em> excepting the last poem (&quot;A Poet's Voice&quot;).</p>
 869
 870
 871
 872 <h3><a name="sec44" id="sec44"></a>
 873 The Prophet</h3>
 874
 875 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> •••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">• </span> (9) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
 876
 877
 878
 879
 880
 881 <h3><a name="sec45" id="sec45"></a>
 882 Sand and Foam</h3>
 883
 884 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> •••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">••• </span> (7) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
 885
 886 <p>An interesting little book of aphorisms.</p>
 887
 888
 889
 890 <h3><a name="sec46" id="sec46"></a>
 891 The Madman</h3>
 892
 893 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">•• </span> (8) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
 894
 895
 896
 897
 898
 899
 900 <h2><a name="sec47" id="sec47"></a>
 901 Homer</h2>
 902
 903
 904
 905 <h3><a name="sec48" id="sec48"></a>
 906 The Odyssey</h3>
 907
 908 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad"> </span> (10) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
 909
 910
 911
 912
 913
 914
 915 <h2><a name="sec49" id="sec49"></a>
 916 Aldous Huxley</h2>
 917
 918 <p class="first">Perhaps the most overrated modern writer. Other people have written
 919 everything he has to write better and many years before he got around
 920 to it.</p>
 921
 922 <h3><a name="sec50" id="sec50"></a>
 923 The Doors of Perception</h3>
 924
 925 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> </span><span class="rating-bad">•••••••••• </span> (0) / <em>Nonfiction</em></p>
 926
 927 <p>Huxley stains the name of Blake by naming this horrible
 928 pseudo-scientific and pseudo-poetic essay after a line from <em>The
 929 Marriage of Heaven and Hell</em>. Subjectivity and objectivity are
 930 incommensurable; his attempt and being subjectively objective is
 931 utterly worthless.</p>
 932
 933
 934
 935 <h3><a name="sec51" id="sec51"></a>
 936 Heaven and Hell</h3>
 937
 938 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> </span><span class="rating-bad">•••••••••• </span> (0) / <em>Nonfiction</em></p>
 939
 940 <p>Blah blah LSD blah blah Mushrooms blah blah Peyote blah blah I'm
 941 Aldous Huxley I'm a pretentious jerk. Don't bother.</p>
 942
 943
 944
 945
 946 <h2><a name="sec52" id="sec52"></a>
 947 William James</h2>
 948
 949
 950
 951 <h3><a name="sec53" id="sec53"></a>
 952 The Varieties of Religious Experience</h3>
 953
 954 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> •••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">••• </span> (7) / <em>Nonfiction</em></p>
 955
 956 <p><a href="William%20James%20-%20The%20Varieties%20of%20Religious%20Experience.html">A partially finished extended summary</a></p>
 957
 958
 959
 960 <h3><a name="sec54" id="sec54"></a>
 961 The PhD Octopus</h3>
 962
 963 <p><em>Nonfiction</em></p>
 964
 965 <blockquote>
 966 <p class="quoted">
 967 America is thus as a nation rapidly drifting towards a state of things
 968 in which no man of science or letters will be accounted respectable
 969 unless some kind of badge or diploma is stamped upon him, and in which
 970 bare personality will be a mark of outcast estate.  It seems to me high
 971 time to rouse ourselves to consciousness, and to cast a critical eye
 972 upon this decidedly grotesque tendency.  Other nations suffer terribly
 973 from the Mandarin disease.  Are we doomed to suffer like the rest?</p>
 974
 975 </blockquote>
 976
 977 <p><a href="William%20James%20-%20The%20PhD%20Octopus.html">Full Text</a></p>
 978
 979
 980
 981
 982 <h2><a name="sec55" id="sec55"></a>
 983 Henry James</h2>
 984
 985 <p class="first">The novelist brother of William James; I've not read many (read:
 986 one) of his books, but what I did was decent.</p>
 987
 988 <h3><a name="sec56" id="sec56"></a>
 989 The Altar of the Dead</h3>
 990
 991 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> •••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">••• </span> (7) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
 992
 993 <p>A short novella about a man who maintained an altar in a church
 994 for all of his lost loved ones on the surface, but something a bit
 995 more beneath.</p>
 996
 997
 998
 999
1000 <h2><a name="sec57" id="sec57"></a>
1001 Gregor Kiczales</h2>
1002
1003
1004
1005 <h3><a name="sec58" id="sec58"></a>
1006 The Art of the Metaobject Protocol</h3>
1007
1008 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad"> </span> (10) / <em>Nonfiction</em></p>
1009
1010 <p>AMOP is useful as a reference to the CLOS MOP (although less so with
1011 the online MOP spec), but the true value of the book lies in the first
1012 half of the book. It presents the design of the CLOS MOP through a
1013 series of revisions that fix limitations of earlier implementations
1014 and gradually work toward a generic and well designed MOP for
1015 CLOS. Through that process one is made more aware of a few general
1016 object protocol design skills, and gains insight into how to cleanly
1017 make mapping decisions customizable.</p>
1018
1019
1020
1021
1022 <h2><a name="sec59" id="sec59"></a>
1023 Søren Kierkegaard</h2>
1024
1025 <p class="first">Kierkegaard was a master of style and philosophy; his writing is
1026 interesting even if one finds the theistic extentialism espoused
1027 disagreeable.</p>
1028
1029 <h3><a name="sec60" id="sec60"></a>
1030 Sickness Unto Death</h3>
1031
1032 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad"> </span> (10) / <em>Nonfiction</em></p>
1033
1034 <p>I purchased this when I was looking through books at a store after
1035 being unable to find the book I really wanted, and I must say that it
1036 was better for me to have found this one.</p>
1037
1038 <p>Contained within is a beautiful analysis of despair in the context of
1039 Christianity (really theism in general). Even if the argument offends,
1040 the presentation cannot. The dialectical nature of despair is
1041 reflected in every aspect of the work, and the method of presentation
1042 forces reflection.</p>
1043
1044
1045
1046 <h3><a name="sec61" id="sec61"></a>
1047 Either/Or</h3>
1048
1049 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad"> </span> (10) / <em>Nonfiction</em></p>
1050
1051 <p>Composed of two portions, <em>Either/Or</em> is a rather lengthy but
1052 rewarding read. The first book is a series of essays and a diary of a
1053 young esthetician; the second is a pair of long letters from an older
1054 ethicist friend to this esthetician. You are then left to resolve the
1055 conflict between the views.</p>
1056
1057
1058
1059 <h3><a name="sec62" id="sec62"></a>
1060 Fear and Trembling</h3>
1061
1062 <p><em>Nonfiction</em></p>
1063
1064 <p>An interesting dialectical lyric contrasting Despair and Faith.</p>
1065
1066
1067
1068 <h3><a name="sec63" id="sec63"></a>
1069 Repetition</h3>
1070
1071 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad"> </span> (10) / <em>Nonfiction</em></p>
1072
1073 <p>He who despairs of esthetic repetition gets none; he who despairs
1074 of ethical repetition receieves the esthetic. Is it true then that no
1075 repetition exists? Is transition all one can hope for?</p>
1076
1077
1078
1079
1080 <h2><a name="sec64" id="sec64"></a>
1081 Alisa Kwitney</h2>
1082
1083
1084
1085 <h3><a name="sec65" id="sec65"></a>
1086 Destiny: A Chronicle of Deaths Foretold</h3>
1087
1088 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">•• </span> (8) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
1089
1090
1091
1092
1093
1094
1095 <h2><a name="sec66" id="sec66"></a>
1096 David Lamkins</h2>
1097
1098
1099
1100 <h3><a name="sec67" id="sec67"></a>
1101 Successful Lisp</h3>
1102
1103 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">•• </span> (8) / <em>Nonfiction</em></p>
1104
1105 <p>After learning Scheme, I read <em>Successful Lisp</em> and was able to
1106 pick up Common Lisp fairly easily.</p>
1107
1108
1109
1110
1111 <h2><a name="sec68" id="sec68"></a>
1112 Mencius</h2>
1113
1114
1115
1116 <h3><a name="sec69" id="sec69"></a>
1117 Mencius</h3>
1118
1119 <p><em>Nonfiction</em></p>
1120
1121
1122
1123
1124
1125
1126 <h2><a name="sec70" id="sec70"></a>
1127 Walter Miller</h2>
1128
1129
1130
1131 <h3><a name="sec71" id="sec71"></a>
1132 A Canticle for Leibowitz</h3>
1133
1134 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad"> </span> (10) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
1135
1136
1137
1138
1139
1140
1141 <h2><a name="sec72" id="sec72"></a>
1142 John Milton</h2>
1143
1144
1145
1146 <h3><a name="sec73" id="sec73"></a>
1147 Paradise Lost</h3>
1148
1149 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad"> </span> (10) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
1150
1151
1152
1153
1154
1155
1156 <h2><a name="sec74" id="sec74"></a>
1157 Alan Moore</h2>
1158
1159
1160
1161 <h3><a name="sec75" id="sec75"></a>
1162 Watchmen</h3>
1163
1164 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">•• </span> (8) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
1165
1166
1167
1168
1169
1170 <h3><a name="sec76" id="sec76"></a>
1171 V for Vendetta</h3>
1172
1173 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad"> </span> (10) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
1174
1175
1176
1177
1178
1179
1180 <h2><a name="sec77" id="sec77"></a>
1181 Thomas More</h2>
1182
1183
1184
1185 <h3><a name="sec78" id="sec78"></a>
1186 Utopia</h3>
1187
1188 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> •••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">••• </span> (7) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
1189
1190 <p>I read most of Utopia in high school with the TI-89 ebook reader, but
1191 the way the book was split up made it a bit difficult to grasp the
1192 overall structure. I found a copy at a used book store one day, and so
1193 I read it again, and found it much more comprehensible. It is a quick
1194 read, and decent piece of literature. The interesting social system
1195 espoused resembles resembles state communism (even if perhaps as a
1196 negative ideal), but with an strange blend of 14th century European
1197 social customs.</p>
1198
1199
1200
1201
1202 <h2><a name="sec79" id="sec79"></a>
1203 Friedrich Nietzsche</h2>
1204
1205 <p class="first">A bit acerbic and esoteric, Nietzsche is for me a good <em>secular</em>
1206 counterpart to Kierkegaard's theistic philosophy. Nietzsche's
1207 polemical works raise important questions for anyone who reads works
1208 on ethics. As such it is a shame that he has gotten a bad reputation
1209 by being read by far too many angsty teenagers who see (and relay)
1210 only Nietzsche the asshole rather than Nietzsche the master of the
1211 polemic.</p>
1212
1213 <h3><a name="sec80" id="sec80"></a>
1214 Thus Spoke Zarathustra</h3>
1215
1216 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">•• </span> (8) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
1217
1218 <p>A masterpiece of indirect communication depsite the occasional
1219 flaw and overly dramatic passage. Certainly a book worth reading many
1220 times over the course of one's life.</p>
1221
1222
1223
1224 <h3><a name="sec81" id="sec81"></a>
1225 Beyond Good and Evil</h3>
1226
1227 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">•• </span> (8) / <em>Nonfiction</em></p>
1228
1229 <p>A somewhat more comprehensible, if a bit less aesthetically
1230 pleasing, presentation of much of the philosophy found in <em>Thus Spoke
1231 Zarathustra</em> in the negative form. The final chapters are very
1232 important (not to detract from the value of the rest of the work) if
1233 one wishes to understand <em>On the Genealogy of Morals</em>.</p>
1234
1235
1236
1237 <h3><a name="sec82" id="sec82"></a>
1238 On the Geneaology of Morals</h3>
1239
1240 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> •••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">• </span> (9) / <em>Nonfiction</em></p>
1241
1242 <p><em>On the Geneaology of Morals</em> is a wonderful book of three
1243 polemical essays on the origin of moral/ethical valuations, and the
1244 blindness of modern philosphers whose very thinking is tainted by
1245 these valuations unknowingly.</p>
1246
1247
1248
1249 <h3><a name="sec83" id="sec83"></a>
1250 Ecce Homo</h3>
1251
1252 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> •••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">••• </span> (7) / <em>Nonfiction</em></p>
1253
1254 <p><em>Ecce Homo</em> is Nietzsche's very strange autobiography and
1255 explanation of his own works. At points it is clear that it could have
1256 used a bit more editing (prevented by Nietzsche ... falling into a
1257 catatonic state and all), but is still a very useful book to read as
1258 Nietzsche explains the overall structure of his works.</p>
1259
1260
1261
1262
1263 <h2><a name="sec84" id="sec84"></a>
1264 George Orwell</h2>
1265
1266
1267
1268 <h3><a name="sec85" id="sec85"></a>
1269 1984</h3>
1270
1271 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad"> </span> (10) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
1272
1273
1274
1275
1276
1277 <h3><a name="sec86" id="sec86"></a>
1278 Animal Farm</h3>
1279
1280 <p><em>Fiction</em></p>
1281
1282
1283
1284
1285
1286
1287 <h2><a name="sec87" id="sec87"></a>
1288 Plato</h2>
1289
1290
1291
1292 <h3><a name="sec88" id="sec88"></a>
1293 Symposium</h3>
1294
1295 <p><em>Fiction</em></p>
1296
1297
1298
1299
1300
1301 <h3><a name="sec89" id="sec89"></a>
1302 Euthyphro</h3>
1303
1304 <p><em>Fiction</em></p>
1305
1306
1307
1308
1309
1310 <h3><a name="sec90" id="sec90"></a>
1311 Apology</h3>
1312
1313 <p><em>Nonfiction</em></p>
1314
1315
1316
1317
1318
1319 <h3><a name="sec91" id="sec91"></a>
1320 Crito</h3>
1321
1322 <p><em>Fiction</em></p>
1323
1324
1325
1326
1327
1328 <h3><a name="sec92" id="sec92"></a>
1329 Phaedo</h3>
1330
1331 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad"> </span> (10) / <em>Nonfiction</em></p>
1332
1333
1334
1335
1336
1337 <h3><a name="sec93" id="sec93"></a>
1338 Protagoras</h3>
1339
1340 <p><em>Fiction</em></p>
1341
1342
1343
1344
1345
1346
1347 <h2><a name="sec94" id="sec94"></a>
1348 Luke Rhinehardt</h2>
1349
1350
1351
1352 <h3><a name="sec95" id="sec95"></a>
1353 The Dice Man</h3>
1354
1355 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> •••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">••• </span> (7) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
1356
1357 <blockquote>
1358 <p class="quoted">
1359 And it's his illusions about what
1360 constitutes the real world which are
1361 inhibiting him...
1362 His reality, his reason, his society
1363 ...these are what must be destroyed</p>
1364
1365 </blockquote>
1366
1367 <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
1368 this book; at worst it would be a waste of time. Much reward was found
1369 in this random stab in the dark. The book is framed as an
1370 autobiography of the author as a psychoanalyst, and his progression
1371 through life as a Dice Man after deciding to live his life through
1372 random chance.</p>
1373
1374 <p>The style, plot, and content are equally neurotic; part comedy, part
1375 attack on psychoanalysis, and part deep philosophy. It was often
1376 difficult to put down, and was read in under a week of spare time.</p>
1377
1378
1379
1380
1381 <h2><a name="sec96" id="sec96"></a>
1382 Neal Stephenson</h2>
1383
1384
1385
1386 <h3><a name="sec97" id="sec97"></a>
1387 Snow Crash</h3>
1388
1389 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> •••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">• </span> (9) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
1390
1391 <p>As one must read the <em>Bible</em> to understand English literature, so one
1392 must read <em>Snow Crash</em> today to be a nerd. In the realm of modern pop
1393 fiction this is one of the better books I've read; it was devoured in
1394 a mere four nights. Neal Stepheson may not be Milton, but he does come
1395 up with enganging tales. <em>Snow Crash</em> has a nice undertone of (quite
1396 accurate) political and social commentary that makes it worth reading
1397 as more than mere cyberpunk fiction.</p>
1398
1399
1400
1401 <h3><a name="sec98" id="sec98"></a>
1402 Cryptonomicon</h3>
1403
1404 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">•• </span> (8) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
1405
1406 <p>I read <em>Cryptonomicon</em> when it was new, and at the time I thought it was
1407 good. It could have lost a hundred or so pages without detracting from
1408 the plot, but it was easy reading and didn't take very long to
1409 finish. The story was enganging, and the continual switching between
1410 the 1940s and present day slowly unravelled the tale in a nice way.</p>
1411
1412 <p>I'd still have to recommend <em>Snow Crash</em> if one wished to read only one
1413 Stephenson novel.</p>
1414
1415
1416
1417
1418 <h2><a name="sec99" id="sec99"></a>
1419 Bjarne Stroustrup</h2>
1420
1421
1422
1423 <h3><a name="sec100" id="sec100"></a>
1424 The C++ Programming Language (3rd edition)</h3>
1425
1426 <p><em>Nonfiction</em></p>
1427
1428 <p>Once upon a time I was fifteen and I read this book. It was more
1429 or less what taught me how to write programs just large enough to do
1430 useful things, and so shall forever be remembered by me. A year and a
1431 half later I stumbled upon a little language called Scheme and fell
1432 down the rabbit hole.</p>
1433
1434
1435
1436
1437 <h2><a name="sec101" id="sec101"></a>
1438 JRR Tolkien</h2>
1439
1440
1441
1442 <h3><a name="sec102" id="sec102"></a>
1443 The Lord of the Rings</h3>
1444
1445 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> •••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">• </span> (9) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
1446
1447
1448
1449
1450
1451 <h3><a name="sec103" id="sec103"></a>
1452 The Silmarillion</h3>
1453
1454 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> ••••••••••</span><span class="rating-bad"> </span> (10) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
1455
1456
1457
1458
1459
1460 <h3><a name="sec104" id="sec104"></a>
1461 The Lost Tales</h3>
1462
1463 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> •••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">••• </span> (7) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
1464
1465
1466
1467
1468
1469
1470 <h2><a name="sec105" id="sec105"></a>
1471 H.G. Wells</h2>
1472
1473
1474
1475 <h3><a name="sec106" id="sec106"></a>
1476 The Island of Dr Moreau</h3>
1477
1478 <p><em>Rating:</em> <span class="rating-good"> •••••••</span><span class="rating-bad">••• </span> (7) / <em>Fiction</em></p>
1479
1480
1481
1482
1483
1484
1485 <h2><a name="sec107" id="sec107"></a>
1486 Yevgeny Zamyatin</h2>
1487
1488
1489
1490 <h3><a name="sec108" id="sec108"></a>
1491 We</h3>
1492
1493 <p><em>Fiction</em></p>
1494
1495
1496
1497   <!-- Page published by Emacs Muse ends here -->
1498
1499   <p class="cke-buttons">
1500     <!-- validating badges, any browser, etc -->
1501     <a href="http://validator.w3.org/check/referer"><img
1502         src="http://www.w3.org/Icons/valid-xhtml10"
1503         alt="Valid XHTML 1.0!" /></a>
1504
1505     <a href="http://www.anybrowser.org/campaign/"><img
1506         src="img/buttons/w3c_ab.png" alt="[ Viewable With Any Browser
1507         ]" /></a>
1508
1509     <a href="http://www.debian.org/"><img
1510         src="img/buttons/debian.png" alt="[ Powered by Debian ]" /></a>
1511
1512     <a href="http://hcoop.net/">
1513       <img src="img/buttons/hcoop.png"
1514         alt="[ Hosted by HCoop]" />
1515     </a>
1516
1517     <a href="http://www.fsf.org/register_form?referrer=114">
1518       <img src="img/buttons/fsf_member.png"
1519         alt="[ FSF Associate Member ]" />
1520     </a>
1521   </p>
1522
1523 <p class="cke-footer">Lindsay (Carlton): nighttime baker! sounds a little iffy
1524 </p>
1525 <p class="cke-timestamp">Last Modified:
1526     March  2, 2009</p>
1527   </body>
1528 </html>