| Dr. Faustus by Christopher Marlowe, 56 pages Steve Gadd 15 July 1995 | The Prophet by Kahlil Gibran, 96 pages Steve Gadd 12 January 1996 |
Flatland by Edwin A. Abbott, 82 pages Steve Gadd 04 January 1998 Fanciful story of A. Square, whose comfortable existence in two dimensions is interrupted by his encounter with a sphere. |
Cry The Beloved Country [audio] by Alan Paton, 0 pages Steve Gadd 15 February 1999 The touching story of a priest who travels to South Africa in search of his son. |
The Americans: The National Experience [audio] by Daniel J. Boorstin, 0 pages Steve Gadd 16 April 1999 It took two months to get through, but this second part of the trilogy offered several fascinating side stories from the first century of United States history. |
A Journal of the Plague Year [audio] by Daniel Defoe, 0 pages Steve Gadd 16 December 1999 A firsthand account of the devistating Black Plague in London in 1665. |
Cold Mountain [audio] by Charles Frazier, 0 pages Steve Gadd 02 January 2000 Inman's journey home from a Civil War hospital is even more captivating in this reading by the author. |
Black Hawk Down [audio] by Mark Bowden, 0 pages Steve Gadd 26 February 2000 The ill-fated American intervention in Somalia, as seen by both sides on the ground. A gruesome and gripping minute-by-minute account of modern urban warfare. |
Like Water for Chocolate [audio] by Laura Esquivel, 0 pages Steve Gadd 19 March 2000 A romantic family epic in the magical-realism style following Tita, who by family tradition is bound to remain single and care for her mother until she dies. |
Airframe [audio] by Michael Crichton, 0 pages Steve Gadd 29 March 2000 A thriller set amid the political drama of the aircraft industry, sure to become a movie before long. |
Prayer Of Jabez by Bruce Wilkinson, 98 pages Erik Bauer 30 November 2001 The small book that packs a lot of controversy. |
Letter to His Father by Franz Kafka, 63 pages Steve Gadd 26 December 2001 Revealing glimpse into the troubled relationship that fueled Kafka's nightmares. |
Perfect Trust by Charles Swindoll, 72 pages Jeff Gadd 05 January 2002 About Perfect Trust in God |
Ghost Soldiers (Audio) by Hampton Sides, 0 pages Kristin Schrock 14 January 2002 The dramatic story of the rescue of the Bataan POWs with lots of heroic derring-do. |
Genesis by God (via Moses' hands), 41 pages Ian Hassell 16 January 2002 God establishes his covenant with mankind |
The Associate (Audio) by Philip Margolin, 0 pages Kristin Schrock 20 January 2002 It starts off well, but then it just spirals into a mediocre (and predictable) thriller. Still not a bad way to pass the commute. |
Exodus by God (via Moses' hands), 33 pages Ian Hassell 29 January 2002 God keeps his covenant with man |
Leviticus by God (via Moses' hand), 24 pages Ian Hassell 13 February 2002 God establishes man's need for Christ. No man could possibly live up to the requirements of Leviticus - enter Christ. Factoid: Lev. contains the most direct quotes from God of any Biblical book. |
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (Audio) by J.K. Rowling, 0 pages Kristin Schrock 14 February 2002 Harry should cry more. Terrible things happen to him and nary a tear. I wonder if that's because he's British. A little sobbing would do him good. This is the best of the bunch. |
Numbers by God (via Moses' hand), 40 pages Ian Hassell 27 February 2002 The history of Israel's wanderings up to, but not including, the entrance into Canaan. |
Red, White, and Blue (Audio) by Susan Isaacs, 0 pages Kristin Schrock 07 March 2002 He's a cowboy disguised as an undercover F.B.I agent. She's a reporter on a big story. Together they stop the bad guys. Not complete dren. Read by the former Lex Luthor, John Shea. |
After Dark (audio) by Phillip Margolin, 0 pages Kristin Schrock 20 March 2002 Dating Tip for Ugly Lawyers: Frame the object of your affection--who is, of course, beautiful--for murder. Defend that person. Fabricate evidence. It's okay, as long as it's all for love. |
Tao Te Ching by Lao Tzu, 90 pages Steven Krise 29 March 2002 I have to concur with the author of the Preface, it is one of the wisest book I've ever read. However, I have a hard time getting past the idea that it's a bit of a waste of time to take 90 pages to talk about something everyone agrees at the outset can't be ascertained that way. I suppose that's mysticism for you. Richly dense, wise book, regardless. |
Deuteronomy by God (via Moses' hand), 29 pages Ian Hassell 31 March 2002 Completes the account of Israel's pre-Canaan history. Great parallel to our own spiritual lives - God loves us, we screw up, God still loves us, we screw up some more... |
Joshua by God ( via Joshua probably), 19 pages Ian Hassell 15 April 2002 Joshua "kicks rear and takes names" as the Israelites establish their territory |
Judges by God (via Unknown), 19 pages Ian Hassell 01 May 2002 Interesting stories of the good, the bad and the judges - Israel was a theocracy but still had the "free will" opportunities that we experience |
Ruth by God (via Samuel?), 4 pages Ian Hassell 05 May 2002 Interesting anecdote about Ben Franklin and the book of Ruth at http://www.seekerstrove.com/ruth.html. Ruth is cited in the early lineage of Christ. |
The Hedgehog and the Fox: An Essay on Tolstoi's View of History by Isiah Berlin, 81 pages James Donahue 06 May 2002 Explians that confusing postscript from War and Peace; long comparison of Tolstoi and de Maistre. |
First Samuel by God (via Unknown), 25 pages Ian Hassell 30 May 2002 Some of the best-known stories of the Bible...David & Goliath, Saul annointed King, David & Jonathan. Israel becomes a monarchy (and begins to pay the price...) |
Second Samuel by God (via Unknown), 21 pages Ian Hassell 21 June 2002 3 words: David And Bathsheba. Amazing story of how a "man after God's own heart" sins, tries to cover his tracks, is convicted, repents, is forgiven, punished and ultimately restored. God clearly reveals his character to us through a wonderfully relevant account of one of the "heroes of the faith". |
First Kings by God (via Unknown - Jeremiah?), 21 pages Ian Hassell 25 July 2002 Still trying to resolve the God revealed in the OT with the God of the NT. We see some fearsome attributes of God displayed when Israel disobeys. I'm really thankful for things like mercy and grace after reading this book. |
The Anglican Understanding of the Church by Paul Avis, 90 pages James Donahue 19 August 2002 Brief and solid. |
Second Kings by God (via Unknown - Jeremiah?), 25 pages Ian Hassell 31 August 2002 Challenging presentation of how far apart Sin and Holiness really are. |
Half Moon Street (Audio) by Anne Perry, 0 pages Julie Gephart 13 September 2002 Absolute worst book in recent memory. Disguised as a Victorian murder mystery, it's really just an excuse to sermonize about the evils of pornography and the inherent wickedness of attempting to act on your own beliefs when this might cause upset to your small-minded family. I was shocked to go to Amazon today and discover Perry is apparently a famous author. Bleck. |
Fascist Italy and Nazi Germany: The Fascist Style of Rule by Alexander De Grand, 94 pages James Donahue 13 November 2002 |
Sword & Fist: A Guidebook to Fighters and Monks by Jason Carl, 96 pages Steven Krise 30 January 2003 New feats, prestige classes, weapons and organizations. Most of the new feats are geared toward monks rather than fighters. Oh well. |
To Build a Fire and Other Stories by Jack London, 84 pages Jeff Gadd 01 February 2003 Some short stories from J.L. that are very well writting, Let all of them have sad endings. |
Defenders of the Faith: A Guidebook to Clerics and Paladins by Rich Redman & James Wyatt, 96 pages Steven Krise 05 February 2003 I feel kind of stupid entering D&D manuals, but that's what I'm reading right now to keep up my pages/day since I've stalled on this piece of shit by Joseph Heller I've been working on since December. |
Socrates Cafe by Christopher Phillips, 87 pages Tony Pisarenkov 12 May 2003 One of the hokiest books I've come across in a long time. This account of the author's experiences fascilitating informal public discussions of questions of the attendees' choice supposedly using the Scoratic method comes out as a thinly disguised self-help book of the shallowest kind. Full of the author's own platitudes and the half-baked pseudo-arguments of his audiences, occasionally interspersed with two-sentence reductions of major philosophers' central ideas, this book gives philosophy a bad name. Normally I would not even bother mentioning any book I threw down in exasperation after two chapters, but I will do it this time to warn potential readers. |
The Trumpeter of Krakow (1928) by Eric P. Kelly, 0 pages A Bennett 26 June 2003 Covering 13th-15th century Cracovian history, largely focussing on the reign of Kasimir IV, Cossack and Tartar unrest in Ukraine, and chiefly how it affected the cities of Krakow and then-neighboring Kasimirez. The novel's exploits follow the travels of the Great Tarnov Crystal, culminating in the Great Fire of 1462, and its subsequent loss in the Vistula. Never let a historian write a novel- -unless he agrees to drink a lot whilst doing so. Else the product of his work will likely be drier than the straw that Pan Kreutz used to indirectly conflagrate Krakow of olde--much as the material is here. The plot's only saving grace was, perhaps, that it stirred in me a further interest in the work and writings of Jan Kanty. But even that is currently in doubt. |
Unruhige Nacht (Restless Night) by Albrecht Goes, 67 pages James Donahue 30 June 2003 A military chaplain visits a condemned man during WWII. The boy, simple and poor, is sentenced to death for miscegenational acts. Through presenting him the Word in verbal and physical form the chaplain begins to question his service. (First novel for me read all the way through auf Deutsch! Yeah!) |
Down and Out in Paris and London by George Orwell, 0 pages Steve Gadd 07 July 2003 Twenty-five year old Eric Blair left his comfortable middle-class lifestyle to get an appreciation for the way the other half lives. This journal of dishwashing and tramping became his first book. Very entertaining and eye-opening if you can ignore the racial stereotypes. In some countries the copyright has expired so you can find the complete text available for download. |
How to Understand and Use a Norwegian by Odd Borretzen, 61 pages Erik Bauer 09 August 2003 Given to me from my norwegian friend, it actually is jammed packed with satire and wit in the caliber of The Onion. |
Othello by William Shakespeare, 45 pages Julie Gephart 30 November 2003 Just a quick refresher after watching the movie _O_. Thank you to this play for giving us “the beast with two backs.” |
This Is Not A Pipe by Michel Foucault, 66 pages Steven Krise 01 January 2004 As Foucault says, "Magritte knits verbal signs and plastic elements together, but without referring them to a prior isotopism. He skirts the base of affirmative discourse on which resemblence calmly reposes, and he brings pure similitudes and nonaffirmative verbal statements into play within the instability of a disoriented volume and an unmapped space." Yeah, what he said. |
Human Evolution - An Illustrated Guide by Peter Andrews & Chris Stringer, 47 pages Steven Krise 14 January 2004 Illustrated by Maurice Wilson (whose drawings are described in the Foreward as "generally ethereal"), this little book details hominoid and hominid evolution starting with Aegyptopithecus in the Oligocene period. Interestingly, the authors come down decidely on the "Neandertals aren't ancestral to H. sapiens" side of the debate. Good little book that is packed with a fair amount of detail for its pithiness. |
Benjamin Franklin : An American Life (Audio) by Walter Isaacson, 0 pages Julie Gephart 14 January 2004 I sure got some historical schooling in this one. Old Ben was part of every single thing that happened in America for 50 years. |
The Witching Hour (audio, abridged) by Anne Rice, 0 pages Julie Gephart 19 March 2004 At first I thought that word “abridged” was going to be my key to enjoying Anne Rice – I’d still get the imaginative story without so many droning side trips into Crazyville. However, I am sad to report that a man died at the end and went to hell, and… well, hell was a Mardi Gras parade. Then I knew it could never really work between Anne and me. |
In Praise of Shadows by Jun'ichiro Tanizaki, 48 pages James Donahue 29 March 2004 A cranky old Japanese nationalist writes a beautiful and moving paean to the darkness, the simplicity of silence, and the mysteriousness of the hidden alcove. All to counter the garishness of the electric light bulb, the wastefulness of trying to alter one's environment, and the inanity of enlightenment. |
Fun With Milk & Cheese by Evan Dorkin, 96 pages Steve Gadd 05 July 2004 Dairy products gone bad! A half-gallon of milk and a wedge of cheese wreak death, mayhem, and destruction. A comic of dada ultraviolence you won't soon forget! Thanks Ray for the loan. |
Are You My Mother? by P D Eastman, 64 pages Steven Krise 20 December 2004 A confused if precocial avian of unspecified species searches for its mother in a variety of unlikely locales, interrogating those it meets with a refrain that lends its form to the book's title. These chance meetings with diverse inhabitants of the bird's environs have a hint of humor (due to the young fowl's naivety) however, the fun is tinged with a vague sense of dread derived from the inherent stress of losing one's primary caregiver and the imminent threat of predation that implies. Not to worry, though, it all ends well for our little feathered friend when a helpful frontend loader lifts it back into its nest just as the matron returns from her foraging expedition. |
Searching for Robert Johnson by Peter Guralnick, 83 pages Steven Krise 16 February 2005 Short essay based largely on the work of Mack McCormick in the 70s that seeks to fix nuggets of fact in the complex matrix of myth, anecdote, and recollection that is the story of RL's life. Has an excellent list of recommended albums in the back, both in terms of RL's influences and people he influenced. |
Poker for Dummies by Richard D Harroch & Lou Krieger, 80 pages Steven Krise 30 April 2005 A reference for the rest of us. |
The Devil by Leo Tolstoy, 52 pages Jonathan Misirian 13 May 2005 Tolstoy's short stories are worth reading over and over again. The Devil is a study in the psychological affects of lust. |
Homage to Catalonia [audio] by George Orwell, 0 pages Steve Gadd 23 June 2005 Animal Farm and 1984 deserve credit for making high school students everywhere aware of this author, but to my mind his non-fiction is much better reading. His skill at the anecdote form was honed in Burma, Paris, and London before he signed up to fight in the Spanish Civil War. His memoirs of the experience include some isolated chapters focusing on the politics of the war, a diversion he describes as necessary but "like diving into a cesspool". The rest is entertaining and sometimes riveting. You know you are in for a good time when you encounter a line like "The whole experience of being hit by a bullet is very interesting and I think it is worth describing in detail." |
Kaddish for a Child Not Born by Imre Kertesz, 95 pages Tony Pisarenkov 25 July 2005 This stream-of-consciousness philosophical treatise cum memoir masquearding as a novella tells the story of a writer, a professional, social and romantic failure, who explains, through the general prism of his Jewishness, how his experience at Auschwitz made him unable to bring another being into this world. Heavy stuff, a bit self-absorbed at times, but intellectually and emotionally intense. |
The old man and the sea by Ernest Hemingway, 92 pages Jonathan Misirian 09 October 2005 Hemingway's short masterpiece is an existentialist's dream. Forcing the reader to identify with the lonely fisherman and the absurdity of his life makes this novella an intriguing read. Sparse word choices and minimal dialogue show Hemingway’s skill at constructing a textured story. |
Today's Gospel: Authentic or Synthetic? by Walter J. Chantry, 92 pages Brad Snyder 14 November 2005 This book uses the story of the rich young ruler in Mark 10 to examine the message of salvation as preached by Christ. More than that, though, it is a critique of the message as it's preached in modern times. Unfortunately, his observations are based largely upon caricature. He doesn't cite more than a few references to support the straw man he creates, so he comes off a bit like a cantankerous old man yelling about "the kids' loud music" (or "folk rock" as he calls it in the book). Still, if you can weed through his somewhat exaggerated statements, many of his observations of Mark 10 are valuable. |
Up At The Villa by W. Somerset Maugham, 95 pages James Donahue 29 November 2005 Maugham continues to probe the deepest mystery of the universe yet again, namely: why do women always prefer the lying charmer to the decent man? I must say that one of the reasons I like Maugham is because he is, especially for writers from the 1920s, so desperately uncool. |
Passport Israel by Donna Rosenthal, 96 pages Brad Snyder 14 December 2005 Working for an Israeli-owned company, I thought it would be prudent to brush up on Israeli culture, business, customs, and etiquette. I hope it works... |
The Watsons (unpublished) by Jane Austen, 49 pages A Bennett 05 January 2006 It's very disheartening when one of your favorite authors is dead, and their novel output stands complete, over. It requires great restraint in a reader of Austen (unlike a reader of, say, Clancy) to attempt to space out "new" material, however paltry it may be, so that they have SOMETHING of hers to look forward to as the decades pass. In "It's a Wonderful Life", Clarence mentions Mark Twain has started a new novel in heaven. If Twain did, indeed, find his way to heaven, may Austen have to, and may she have some new and complete work ready for me when I arrive... |
Baptism by Francis A. Schaeffer, 25 pages Brad Snyder 11 March 2006 I had a friend that once confessed to me that he did not want to be baptized in his Baptist church because he thought it was little more than a hazing ceremony. The Reformed denominations don't treat it as the center of theology like Baptists do, and this little booklet is an excellent and concise explanation of that understanding from both a logical and theological perspective. |
The Barbarism of Berlin (1914) by G. K. Chesterton, 94 pages James Donahue 22 March 2006 which is more surprising? That G. K. was one of the first British intellects to write a jingoistic, one-sided blast against Germany to support the war effort, or that in this book (as always with G. K.) there is a touch of truth in his bombastic acerbity. |
Tete a Tete: Simone de Beauvoir and Jean Paul Sarte by Hazel Rowley, 95 pages Micaela Larkin 15 April 2006 I think I deserve credit for making it through the first 95 pages. I felt like I was reading people magazine (european edition) after their initial meeting. If anyone makes it through the whole book maybe they can give a better review. |
Собачье сердце by Михаил Булгаков, 88 pages Tony Pisarenkov 13 May 2006 Sad and prescient, though like with Boulgakov's other books, the power would no doubt be lost in translation. |
In the Name of Jesus: Reflections on Christian Leadership by Henri J.M. Nouwen, 82 pages Brad Snyder 24 May 2006 Nouwen was a Roman Catholic priest who ministered to the mentally disabled after years of teaching seminary at Harvard. This small but deep book is a sermon he delivered in Washington, DC (actually, Arlington, VA) about the role of ministry in the coming (now present) century. With his gentle tone and deft understanding of Scripture and human nature, he identifies the need for Christian leaders to stop pursuing relevance, popularity, and power, and instead embrace lives of prayer, confession, and downward mobility. I have tried to read this book every year since it appeared in the mail three years ago. Thank you for the gift, Jonathan. |
The Emperor's New Clothes by Hans Christian Anderson, 85 pages Steve Gadd 07 June 2006 The title story was the least interesting of the six in this collection, maybe because it was so familiar. The rest offered a nice taste of whimsy and Grimm-style morbidity. |
Moses: When Harriet Tubman Led Her People to Freedom by Carole Boston Weatherford, 44 pages Brad Snyder 12 November 2006 My wife is currently teaching African-American history at a local high school, and purchased this book from the book fair at my childrens' school for that purpose. It offers a quasi-fictional rendering of Harriet Tubman's life from the perspective of her conversations with God. It is beautifully illustrated by Kadir Nelson. I recommend it to anyone with children. |
On the Move (2006) by Bono, 64 pages Brad Snyder 04 April 2007 This little book contains the full text of the sermon/speech/homily Bono gave at the 2006 National Prayer Breakfast accompanied by pictures he took while visiting a refugee camp in Ethiopia in 1986. |
Winter Notes on Summer Impressions (1863 - originally) by Fyodor Dostoevsky, 74 pages James Donahue 01 May 2007 |
How Good is Good Enough? (2003) by Andy Stanley, 94 pages Brad Snyder 10 June 2007 A concise little work that challenges the commonly held notion that "good people go to heaven". |
The Spirit Level (2001) by Seamus Heaney, 80 pages James Donahue 23 June 2007 |
Why I Left Scofieldism (1975) by William E. Cox, 20 pages Brad Snyder 23 July 2007 Cox left Scofieldism (now referred to as Dispensationalism) after finding that he couldn't prove it using Scripture alone. Although I don't disagree with his overall assertions that Dispensationalism has some theological hurdles to overcome, I think that declaring it heresy goes a bit far. |
On Suicide Bombing (2007) by Talal Asad, 96 pages James Donahue 24 July 2007 Asad, a Muslim scholar at NYU, fails to see much difference between suicide bombing and the state-sanctioned violence of the West. (He condemns both equally.) So in this series of lectures he roots out the Western/Christian sources of the horror held especially for the suicide bomber, a path that leads through the modern need to secular redemption, the just war theory, the story of Sampson, and the "suicide that defined the term": Christ's Passion. |
John Stueart Curry's "Hoover and the Flood" (2007) by Charles Eldridge, 74 pages James Donahue 17 January 2008 Eldridge uses a 1940 painting of the 1927 Mississippi flood, an event that was, if possible, even worse than Katrina, as a centerpiece to reflect on the iconography of the Deluge in Western art, the failure of Reconstruction to improve the condition of African-American life in the South, the attempt in the 1930s and 1940s to create an "American" art movement, and the depiction of Hoover, who in 1927 was the humanitarian saviour on the scene but by 1940 had turned into a nation's bęte noire over the Depression. |
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (audio) by Douglas Adams, 0 pages Steve Gadd 10 April 2008 This has got to be one of the best "read by the author" readings, but it is still not quite as great as the BBC version. |
No Country for Old Men by Cormac McCarthy, 0 pages Steve Gadd 02 August 2008 Read by Tom Stechschulte. |
Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov, 0 pages Steve Gadd 19 August 2008 Odd that I would have qualms about picking up this book, while happily reading novels about murder and war. I suppose I feared the book was well-known for its subject rather than its quality. Thanks to Tony for pointing out that Nabokov, to say the very least, knows how to turn a phrase. He turns them so well in this polyglot ballet of words that the reader forgets to despise the wretched narrator. Audio version read lovingly by Jeremy Irons. |
Our Man in Havana by Graham Greene, 0 pages Steve Gadd 04 September 2008 Mediocre comedy, audio version. After Lolita, the mediocrity was especially telling. Glad to be done with it. |
Bartleby, the Scrivener by Herman Melville, 57 pages Steve Gadd 20 September 2008 "At present I would prefer not to be a little reasonable," was his mildly cadaverous reply. |
The Dead by James Joyce, 59 pages Steve Gadd 05 October 2008 A cunning format for a story: dry, dinner party dialog for the first half making the reflective, melancholic second half all the more effective. "She was walking on before him so lightly and so erect that he longed to run after her noiselessly, catch her by the shoulders and say something foolish and affectionate into her ear. She seemed to him so frail that he longed to defend her against something and then to be alone with her. Moments of their secret life together burst like stars upon his memory. A heliotrope envelope was lying beside his breakfast-cup and he was caressing it with his hand. Birds were twittering in the ivy and the sunny web of the curtain was shimmering along the floor: he could not eat for happiness. They were standing on the crowded platform and he was placing a ticket inside the warm palm of her glove. He was standing with her in the cold, looking in through a grated window at a man making bottles in a roaring furnace." |
To Build a Fire and Other Stories by Jack London, 84 pages Steve Gadd 08 October 2008 "Love of Life" (here) is better than the more famous story in this collection -- at least it had a protagonist you could root for. |
Letter to a Christian Nation by Sam Harris, 96 pages Steven Krise 06 May 2009 I was warned this was a ridiculous rant by a fool, but as far as I can tell it is just obvious statements about the absurdity of religious fundamentalism by an unashamed atheist. It is a very quick read (easily finished in an hour or two), that feels like a condensed "God Is Not Great" by Hitchens. Not a bad overview if you need to get your atheist card re-stamped, but if you have more time just read Hitchens. |
SOA Adoption for Dummies (2009) by Miko Matsumura, Bjoern Brauel, Jignesh Shah, 86 pages Brad Snyder 06 May 2009 After sitting in meeting after meeting, reading white papers, technical specs, test plans, and previously produced user documentation, this little book was a welcome reprieve. |
Grendel (audio) by John Gardner, 0 pages Steve Gadd 23 June 2009 "My advice to you, my violent friend, is to seek out gold and sit on it." |
Brewing Made Easy by Joe Fisher & Dennis Fisher, 89 pages Steven Krise 03 October 2009 Like somebody created Cliff's Notes from the Cliff's Notes version of the New Complete Joy of Homebrewing. There's nothing to see here; move along. |