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January 06, 2013

Sunday Morning Book Thread 01-06-2013: The Zombie Bible [OregonMuse]
— Open Blogger

Image courtesy of The Zombie Bible Blog by Stant Litore

Good morning morons and moronettes and welcome to this week's shambling, decaying, brains-hungry Sunday Morning Book Thread.

The Zombies Are At the Gates

Stories about zombies and the zombie apocalypse constitute a very large section of the sci-fi/horror genre. I never realized just how big a sub-genre it is until I started poking around on Amazon, looking for zombie books. Sweet smoking Judas, there's a crap ton of zombie books out there. Some even take material written by someone else and insert a zombie storyline into it.

Which is what author Stant Litore has done. In a very interesting way. Because the "material written by someone else" is the Bible, in particular, the book of Jeremiah.

When the first book in the Zombie Bible series, Death Has Come Up into Our Windows, first appeared on one of my Amazon "recommended" lists, I thought, how can you have zombies and the Bible, this is probably the worst schlock imaginable, I'd better take advantage of this $1.99 Kindle sale so I can read it and tell the book thread how bad it is.

But, I was wrong. This book is actually quite good and in particular, the quality of the writing is really good. It's not something I can put into words, kind of the the Supreme Court justice who said he couldn't define pornography, but he knew it when he saw it. For me, good writing is like that. I can't describe the elements of what goes into good writing, but I read it and think, 'Wow, now that is really some fine writing.' This book is like that.

So, what we have here is a new version of the Old Testament book of the prophet Jeremiah (here Hebraicized as Yirmiyahu). The Israelites have broken covenant faithfulness with God, and their dereliction is symbolized by the hill of Tophet, outside of the city of Yerusalem, a site of abominable human sacrifices to the pagan god Chemosh. Up on Tophet, the the dead walk, and the bones of murdered, sacrificed children are strewn about.

And death is coming from the armies of Babylon who are swarming in from the east and are hammering at the gates of the city.

This is not your typical "club 'em, stab 'em, shoot 'em in the head" zombie thriller. In fact, the zombie involvement is muted and mostly in the background. Yes, the main character has to kill a zombie or two, but that's scarcely the point. In this Old Testament reboot, the zombies are like head lice or other vermin -- in normal conditions, where basic rules of cleanliness are followed, not a big deal, but in an unsanitary, filthy environment, vermin thrive and grow. So here, too, with the Israelites beshitting and defiling themselves with false gods, the zombies are becoming a greater problem.

Yirmiyahu is God's navi, her prophet (yes, God is female) sent to warn Israel of the dangers of her idolatry. But the only things he gets in return are severe, violent beatings. This doesn't matter, he is compelled to speak whenever God fills him with Her word -- he must proclaim it to the city, at whatever cost to himself. But when it comes down to it, I don't think this book is about zombies, not really. I think the author used the zombie genre to say something else.

I am reminded of Psalm 115, where the psalmist is contrasting the omnipotence of the one true God of Israel with the worthless idols of the surrounding pagan culture(s). First he says:

Our God is in the heavens;

He does all that he pleases.

And then you can almost hear the scorn dripping from every line:

Their idols are silver and gold,

The work of human hands.

They have mouths, but do not speak;

Eyes, but do not see.

They have ears, but do not hear;

Noses, but do not smell.

They have hands, but do not feel;

Feet, but do not walk;

And they do not make a sound in their throat.

Those who make them become like them;

So do all who trust in them.

So it would not be a stretch that idol worshipers are basically dead men who are still walking around. Not that every pagan in Litore's book turns into into a zombie, that's not what happens. But in a culture rife with gross pagan worship practices, up to and including human sacrifice, it is perhaps not surprising that the ultimate result of such practices might manifest itself somewhere, and the more that culture indulges in idolatry that alienates itself from the nourishing, live-giving God, the more that deathly results will grow and become widespread. We can see this also in Proverbs 8:36b: "All who hate me love death."

But enough of my speculations. Read the book, it's really good. And than after you read it, open your Bible and re-read the book of Jeremiah.

Another Public Service Announcement

This may seem a bit tacky and serve-serving, but that's not my intent. Last week, a commenter whose nic I forget mentioned bookmarking the older book threads. I do this myself, because sometimes I need to refer to one of them. But it occurred to me that this might be good to pass around. So here are bookmarks to all of the book threads I've done since I started doing this late last March. The value here is not from anything I've written, but because there's a royal buttload of book recommendations from many different morons in these threads, and I think some of you might find such a collection to be quite valuable. So, without further ado:

That's all for this week. As always, book thread tips, suggestions, rumors, and insults may be sent to OregonMuse, Proprietor, AoSHQ Book Thread, at aoshqbookthread@gmail.com.

So what have you all been reading this week?

Posted by: Open Blogger at 07:15 AM | Comments (179)
Post contains 1121 words, total size 9 kb.

1 I completed Wizard of Earthsea and I donÂ’t see what everyone was so impressed with.

Based on a recommendation by AtC I am now reading the Iron Druid Chronicles by Kevin Hearne. From the first two books you can see a number of things both good and bad:

Good

Highly entertaining page turner

Moves quickly

Good plots and new themes that are not the usual copycat things

Bad

Somewhat sophomoric style

Writer is a hippy-dippy liberal green and that is reflected in the writing

Highly sacrilegious; if you are a hardcore Christian (or anything) you will be offended by this book series.

Heave out and trice up... Smoking lamp is lighted in all authorized smoking areas. Rise and shine, morning glories... Up and at' em. Drop your cocks and grab your socks... Move it ladies. Chow is being served...

Posted by: Vic at January 06, 2013 07:16 AM (53z96)

2
Do Not Push Down Happy Gun Toting Thread.

Posted by: fixerupper at January 06, 2013 07:18 AM (9MmIU)

3 Half-way through Steve Berry's - The Jefferson Key. Great beginning, and pretty unique "bad guys." 4th generation Privateers....

Posted by: sunny at January 06, 2013 07:21 AM (5tz1s)

4 oops grabbed too much

Posted by: Vic at January 06, 2013 07:21 AM (53z96)

5 Thanks for those links OM. I have save a link to this thread so I van get the lings to the others.

Posted by: Vic at January 06, 2013 07:22 AM (53z96)

6 I don't know about zombies and the Bible, but I'm sure most of you know the story of The Golem (no, not Gollum from Tolkien). http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golem

Posted by: J.J. Sefton at January 06, 2013 07:23 AM (XkWWK)

7 JJ, many SF stories use that Golem thingy in them. Now I know where it originated.

Posted by: Vic at January 06, 2013 07:24 AM (53z96)

8 Hi all. I've just finished Fatal Decision: Anzio and the Battle for Rome by Carlo D'Este. I read it side-by-side with my dad's handwritten journal from WWII. Dad was field artillery, initially south of Cassino, then his unit moved to the Anzio Beachhead at the beginning of February, was there throughout the stalemate and the breakout. Following the dash to Rome he went up in an observation plane with a buddy and they flew right over the Vatican while the Pope was giving a welcoming speech to the Allies (within a couple of days of the Allies capturing Rome). The sad part is my dad and I almost never talked about any of that while he was alive. He compartmentalized it following the war.

Posted by: Seamus Muldoon at January 06, 2013 07:27 AM (1OZSU)

9 I'm still living in the past with my reading. Currently about 2/3rds of the way through an unabridged Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court. Serious screeds against the Catholic Church that I'd forgotten. Plenty of other good stuff in there well worth re-reading.

Posted by: Lincolntf at January 06, 2013 07:29 AM (ZshNr)

10 "Amighty Fortress" - Volume IV of the Safehold Series by David Weber. This is basically, the Honorverse done in sailing ships. It has strong character development, complex political intrigue, intense naval battles, and more than most people will want to know about the technology of wind powered warships.

Posted by: Grumpy the Younger at January 06, 2013 07:29 AM (jts1f)

My sister loaned me a book I had never heard of. 'The March' by E. L. Doctorow. A novel about Sherman's march through the South. Just started reading it the other day, and pretty good so far. Follows characters on both sides.

I've always wondered what it would be like to be in the path of such an invasion, and how would you get the hell out of the way?

Posted by: HH at January 06, 2013 07:30 AM (XXwdv)

12 Also, Volume II of The Complete Stories of Sherlock Homes by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.

Posted by: Grumpy the Younger at January 06, 2013 07:31 AM (jts1f)

13 8 Posted by: Seamus Muldoon at January 06, 2013 11:27 AM (1OZSU) Wow. G-d bless him. Anzio is just a classic tale of military incompetence. As Winston Churchill said in the wake of the landings, "I had hoped we were hurling a wildcat into the shore, but all we got was a stranded whale."

Posted by: J.J. Sefton at January 06, 2013 07:32 AM (XkWWK)

14 i just have to say....i don't get the whole zombie thing...

Posted by: phoenixgirl, it's no longer Christmas at January 06, 2013 07:33 AM (GVxQo)

15 Ummmm....is it wrong of me to say that absent the whole "flesh eating" thing, I'd totally hit it?

Posted by: BCochran1981 at January 06, 2013 07:33 AM (GEICT)

Posted by: Seamus Muldoon at January 06, 2013 11:27 AM (1OZSU)

Hey, so what kind of stuff is in his journal? That could be pretty damn interesting.

Posted by: HH at January 06, 2013 07:34 AM (XXwdv)

17 connecticut yankee in king arthur's court is one of my favorite all time books.....

Posted by: phoenixgirl, it's no longer Christmas at January 06, 2013 07:35 AM (GVxQo)

18 Ummmm....is it wrong of me to say that absent the whole "flesh eating" thing, I'd totally hit it? Posted by: BCochran1981 at January 06, 2013 11:33 AM (GEICT) Yep, we have to coin a new term. Creepy Hot?

Posted by: Oldsailors Poet, aka Jack July author of Amy Lynn available on Amazon. at January 06, 2013 07:35 AM (l86i3)

19 connecticut yankee in king arthur's court is one of my favorite all time books..... Posted by: phoenixgirl, it's no longer Christmas at January 06, 2013 11:35 AM (GVxQo) Mine too, I also liked Island of the Blue Dolphin.

Posted by: Oldsailors Poet, aka Jack July author of Amy Lynn available on Amazon. at January 06, 2013 07:36 AM (l86i3)

20 Yep, we have to coin a new term. Creepy Hot? Posted by: Oldsailors Poet, aka Jack July author of Amy Lynn available on Amazon. at January 06, 2013 11:35 AM (l86i3) Dead hot?

Posted by: BCochran1981 at January 06, 2013 07:36 AM (GEICT)

OM, that was an outstanding discussion of this book which, in spite of my general lack of interest in zombie stories and my repeated (worthless) resolutions to stop buying books, I will now buy. Damn it.

I am still on a murder mystery kick so on the bedside table, I have "Bad Move" by Linwood Barclay which I have barely just started and so don't have an opinion on, although it wasn't instantly grabbing enough for me not to also start "Love You More" by Lisa Gardner which I am reading. And I've gotten sidetracked from "Monster Hunters International" because I had to put it on the tall stack next to the short stack next to my bed to keep Evil Kitteh from chewing on the corners of the cover.

This week, I have to read "Doomsday Book" by Connie Willis and "Falling Leaves: The true story of an unwanted Chinese Daughter" by AdelineYen Mah because there are holds on those books and they're due next Saturday.

Posted by: Tonestaple at January 06, 2013 07:38 AM (BGruy)

22 Dead hot? Posted by: BCochran1981 at January 06, 2013 11:36 AM (GEICT) Hmm, that sorta takes you straight into necro world. Reguardless of the chicks situation my minimum requirement is some sort of animation.

Posted by: Oldsailors Poet, aka Jack July author of Amy Lynn available on Amazon. at January 06, 2013 07:38 AM (l86i3)

23 Jeremiah is to be read in its Septuagint version. The version in our Bibles is probably from the Hebrew and this version is widely known to be over-edited:
http://www.academia.edu/796233/ The_Septuagint_and_its_Literary-Critical_Value_According_to_Emanuel_Tov

[remove the spaces]

Posted by: boulder hobo at January 06, 2013 07:38 AM (QTHTd)

24 oldsailor are you mocking me?...because that is another of my all time favorite books james and the giant peach was the first book i ever bought and that will always be number one....

Posted by: phoenixgirl, it's no longer Christmas at January 06, 2013 07:38 AM (GVxQo)

25 undead hot? I denounce myself ... I actually don't get the whole Zombie thing either

Posted by: Grumpy the Younger at January 06, 2013 07:39 AM (jts1f)

26 Posted by: phoenixgirl, it's no longer Christmas at January 06, 2013 11:38 AM (GVxQo) As a Published Author I do not mock on the book thread. Except when I'm chatting with BC about tapping the undead. :-)

Posted by: Oldsailors Poet, aka Jack July author of Amy Lynn available on Amazon. at January 06, 2013 07:40 AM (l86i3)

27 I have never really cared for the zombie thing, the vampire thing, or boogers in general thing. Neither in books or movies.

But that seems to be the new thing, particularly for women and the soft porn vampire fangy bodice rippers.

I said something about that this week and it being hard to find SF/fantasy books written for males. That is when AtC recommended that Iron Druid series.

Posted by: Vic at January 06, 2013 07:40 AM (53z96)

"This week, I have to read "Doomsday Book" by Connie Willis"

I really like that one. Think I've read it twice.

Posted by: HH at January 06, 2013 07:40 AM (XXwdv)

29 22 Dead hot? Posted by: BCochran1981 at January 06, 2013 11:36 AM (GEICT) ---------- Hmm, that sorta takes you straight into necro world. Reguardless of the chicks situation my minimum requirement is some sort of animation. Posted by: Oldsailors Poet, aka Jack July author of Amy Lynn available on Amazon. at January 06, 2013 11:38 AM (l86i3) Yeah, hmmm.....I dunno. I'm kinda at a loss....

Posted by: BCochran1981 at January 06, 2013 07:41 AM (GEICT)

30 16 Posted by: Seamus Muldoon at January 06, 2013 11:27 AM (1OZSU)

Hey, so what kind of stuff is in his journal? That could be pretty damn interesting.

Posted by: HH at January 06, 2013 11:34 AM (XXwdv)

******

My brother had converted the journal into a book format a few years ago, scanned page-by-page layout of the journal with typed transcription alongside (vanity published for the family). Most of the entries are pretty mundane. Weather conditions, work related stuff. He gives reference to events in the larger theater (progress on the Russian front, D-day, etc). He references the two big railroad guns (Anzio Express and Anzio Annie) and actually was able to personally inspect a dud round from one of them. Apparently it had some unusual dual rifling marks from the German engineered big guns. He mentioned meeting General Truscott shortly after Truscott took over VI Corps in February.

Posted by: Seamus Muldoon at January 06, 2013 07:41 AM (1OZSU)

31 Finished the latest Jeri Westerson medieval noir this week. Her series about Crispin Guest, disgraced knight turned detective for hire, get better with each installment. All the major players of the late 14th century show up from John of Gaunt, a young and haughty Richard II, Chaucer, other personages high and low, etc. Excellent feel of what is what like to make your way on the "mean" streets of London. Fun reading. Looking forward to her next installment.

Posted by: Tuna at January 06, 2013 07:41 AM (M/TDA)

32 Almost forgot, I finally got to read the new Vince Flynn book this week. As always, it was good.

Posted by: Vic at January 06, 2013 07:42 AM (53z96)

33 Posted by: phoenixgirl, it's no longer Christmas at January 06, 2013 11:38 AM (GVxQo) Actually my sixth grade Teacher, Mrs. Johnson at Grissom Elementary School in Gary In. Read a Chapter of that book to us at the end of every day. She more than anyone made me want to read. I have never forgotten the Dog with the big yellow eyes.

Posted by: Oldsailors Poet, aka Jack July author of Amy Lynn available on Amazon. at January 06, 2013 07:42 AM (l86i3)

34 Almost forgot, I finally got to read the new Vince Flynn book this week. As always, it was good. Posted by: Vic at January 06, 2013 11:42 AM (53z96) It wasn't bad. Like I said last week, it was his worst. but still the ugliest bunny at the playboy mansion is still really good.

Posted by: Oldsailors Poet, aka Jack July author of Amy Lynn available on Amazon. at January 06, 2013 07:45 AM (l86i3)

35 21 I and many others on previous threads have stated their admiration for "Doomsday Book". I've read it several times. Great book. Very moving.

Posted by: Tuna at January 06, 2013 07:45 AM (M/TDA)

36 I look through a ton of shitty zombie fiction on Amazon but a Moron turned me on to the The Remaining" and "Surviving the Dead", which are actually pretty good and not expensive. They at least have a passing acquaintance with an editor.

Posted by: USS Diversity at January 06, 2013 07:46 AM (MPjT8)

37 I'm reading Pournelle again: "Harvest of Stars". This one is pretty good actually.

America has gone totalitarian. There was a "Renewal" movement, in which Leftist extremists (environmentalists mainly, also some racial-justice types) took over and destroyed the economy. Some liberty was restored after this failed. But then a cadre of (semi-)scientific progressives, the Avantists, took over and this bunch are even worse.

The plot involves some dissidents who are trying to flee from / resist the Avantists as this cult tries to grab the systems off Earth as well.

What strikes me is how well Pournelle, in 1992-3, predicted the mostly-environmental totalitarianism of the 2010s. I was just on an aeroplane flight. You can't even read an advertisement these days without "green" and "sustainable" and "saving the planet" slapping you in the face.

Posted by: boulder hobo at January 06, 2013 07:47 AM (QTHTd)

38 Actually my sixth grade Teacher, Mrs. Johnson at Grissom Elementary School in Gary In. Read a Chapter of that book to us at the end of every day. She more than anyone made me want to read. I have never forgotten the Dog with the big yellow eyes. Posted by: Oldsailors Poet, aka Jack July author of Amy Lynn available on Amazon. at January 06, 2013 11:42 AM (l86i3) My 1st grade teacher, Mrs. MacDonald, had a reading contest at the end of every year. We created "bookworms". We made the head out of paper plates and then for every book we read, obv small "starter" books, we got to add a small circle. She hung them from the ceiling and they wound all over the room. My parents said that I already was a big reader, but to add the competitive part to it...well, that got me rolling. I still love to read. We actually paid a crapload of money to have a giant bookcase built in our house to hold all my books. And I'm out of room.

Posted by: BCochran1981 at January 06, 2013 07:48 AM (GEICT)

39 Speaking of the living dead, I keep checking my news feeds to see if Chavez has met our maker yet.

I'm reading Madame Bovary at the moment. My mom told me she saw the movie and didn't like it, so I thought I'd check the source. Translation by Lydia Davis, which is supposed to matter, as she is considered one of the foremost experts on french to English translations, they say.

I'm not quite halfway through it, and I like it quite a bit. Not a lot of "action," but it's a very thoroughly accomplished study in character from multiple directions.

Posted by: BurtTC at January 06, 2013 07:48 AM (BeSEI)

Don't know about any zombie stuff but for all you Renaissance morons "The Lost Battles" by Jonathan Jones is a great read. Primarily it is the story of the rivalry between da Vinci and Michelangelo who detested each other who were forced to work together in the Great Council Hall of Florence.

Other characters of the times include the Medicis, Borgias, Savonarola, Donatello, Verrochio, and other strange ducks. Also interesting is the fact that Leonardo was a fop and Michelangelo was a dirt bag.

Posted by: Libra at January 06, 2013 07:55 AM (kd8U8)

"You can't even read an advertisement these days without "green" and "sustainable" and "saving the planet" slapping you in the face."

Laughs...

An hour or so ago I went to recycle beer bottles. Not that I'm 'Mr. Green', but I just love the sound of breaking glass.

Ok, so I'm weird that way.

Posted by: HH at January 06, 2013 07:55 AM (XXwdv)

42 Ms. McKiernan read a chapter a day of Blue Dolphin, The Cay, Where the Red Fern Grows, others. When she went out for a smoke I'd take over reading duties.

Posted by: lincolntf at January 06, 2013 07:57 AM (ZshNr)

43 Ms. McKiernan read a chapter a day of Blue Dolphin, The Cay, Where the Red Fern Grows, others. When she went out for a smoke I'd take over reading duties. Posted by: lincolntf at January 06, 2013 11:57 AM (ZshNr) LOL, they did that back in the day. I remember smoke billowing out of the teachers lounge like a Cheech and Chong movie.

Posted by: Oldsailors Poet, aka Jack July author of Amy Lynn available on Amazon. at January 06, 2013 07:58 AM (l86i3)

44 Thanks to whomever recommend Bernard Cromwell for historical fiction. I read his Agincourt novel and finally have backstory on the longbows vs crossbows great debate. I'll buy more Cromwell books. Its fun to get some real history along with a great read.

Posted by: Palerider at January 06, 2013 07:58 AM (ql12X)

45 Creepy Hot?

That would be Allison Harvard, otherwise known as Creepy Chan.

Link in nic.

Posted by: this one time at hobo camp... at January 06, 2013 07:59 AM (P1xyf)

46 That would be Allison Harvard, otherwise known as Creepy Chan. OMG, she looks ten years old.

Posted by: Oldsailors Poet, aka Jack July author of Amy Lynn available on Amazon. at January 06, 2013 08:00 AM (l86i3)

47 Reading Germany's Hugh Seas Fleet in the World War, by Admiral Reinhard Scheer, on the Kindle. And I gotta say the guy is one pissy whiner. Really sore loser, constantly bitching about what mean poopyheads the British were.

Didn't help much that neither he nor any other high ranking officer in the Kaiser's Navy (including Tirpitz) really understood sea power and so had no real appreciation for how and why they lost so badly. There was one major exception, Admiral Wolfgang Wegner, although I suspect that he did not figure it out until extensive study and analysis after the war. But Tirpitz and Scheer and Hipper were like cargo cultists, assuming that building battleships in sufficient number would instantly grant mastery of sea power. Even after Jutland the Germans crowed that they had really won, despite that Scheer only saved his fleet by disengaging - twice - and that even after the RN suffered heavier losses the Germans were still bottled up and the blockade still nearly airtight.

Posted by: Steve Skubinna at January 06, 2013 08:02 AM (xWNH+)

48 Dude, she looks awful. Somebody get her a bacon cheeseburgers, fries and a shake...STAT

Posted by: BCochran1981 at January 06, 2013 08:03 AM (GEICT)

49 Zombie fiction makes you evaluate your surroundings for their tactical and strategic value.

Posted by: eman at January 06, 2013 08:07 AM (EWsrI)

Hey Vic, one author of sci-fi that I really like is Jack McDevitt.

His books for the most part are mysteries, Although that may sound weird, they really work, at least to me. Takes place in the far future, but very well done.

Might want to check him out.

Posted by: HH at January 06, 2013 08:07 AM (XXwdv)

51 I don't know if any rons remember a guy named Harold Robbins, But when I was Fifteen I started reading his books. The two I remember most were the Pirate and the Carpetbaggers.

Posted by: Oldsailors Poet, aka Jack July author of Amy Lynn available on Amazon. at January 06, 2013 08:09 AM (l86i3)

52 Vic, enter my nic into the Amazon search box. You have to be somewhat familiar with the Warhammer 40k backstory to understand some of the references though.

Posted by: Eisenhorn at January 06, 2013 08:09 AM (OjQYm)

53 Doomesday book. Hits like a physical blow. You will be blasted emotionally. It is a must read for anyone who thinks.

Posted by: simplemind at January 06, 2013 08:09 AM (NGsLN)

54 Doomesday book. Hits like a physical blow. You will be blasted emotionally. It is a must read for anyone who thinks. Posted by: simplemind at January 06, 2013 12:09 PM (NGsLN) I keep hearing good things about that. I think it's my next book.

Posted by: Oldsailors Poet, aka Jack July author of Amy Lynn available on Amazon. at January 06, 2013 08:11 AM (l86i3)

55 Hot zombies incoming OSP.....

Posted by: BCochran1981 at January 06, 2013 08:14 AM (GEICT)

56 I'll buy more Cromwell books. Its fun to get some real history along with a great read.

Posted by: Palerider at January 06, 2013 11:58 AM (ql12X)

Try his series on the Saxons

Posted by: Vic at January 06, 2013 08:14 AM (53z96)

57 41, HH, the highlight of a trip to the grocery store or Sam's Club is returning the cart to a cart corral and banging it into the others as hard as I can.

Posted by: Tonestaple at January 06, 2013 08:14 AM (BGruy)

58 BTW, our local library had those and you cn read them free,

Posted by: Vic at January 06, 2013 08:15 AM (53z96)

Even though you know what is going to happen . . . it doesn't matter - in so many ways . . .

Posted by: simplemind at January 06, 2013 08:15 AM (NGsLN)

60 Vic asked about the newest Honor Harrington book a while back which prompted me to discover two other of the David Weber's series of which I was unaware, Mission of Honor and A Rising Thunder. Both are excellent adventures and have me anxiously awaiting the completion of Shadow of Freedom. I also read Vince Flynn's The Last Man, though I enjoyed it I also agree it wasn't one of his best results. I recently finished reading The Noble House(another Book Thread recommendation from over a year ago), after the first couple thousand pages I really enjoyed it. In fact I liked it so much I was prompted to buy the TV mini series fashioned after it(starring Pierce Brosnan) from the 80s or such and it really sucked. They omitted the whole story line about the Russian spy network and a lot of other things.

Posted by: sawhorse at January 06, 2013 08:15 AM (MVgm3)

61 http://tinyurl.com/bh4xbdr Zombie NSFW

Posted by: BCochran1981 at January 06, 2013 08:15 AM (GEICT)

62 49 Zombie fiction makes you evaluate your surroundings for their tactical and strategic value. Posted by: eman at January 06, 2013 12:07 PM (EWsrI) Reading "The Jawa Report" will do that too.

Posted by: Grumpy the Younger at January 06, 2013 08:15 AM (jts1f)

63 Reading: Fall of the Giants, by Ken Follett. So far it has not grabbed me like Jeff Shaara's To the Last Man. Three titles about early life on the Pennsylvania frontier: two by Roy F Chandler "Tim Murphy Rifleman" and "Fort Robinson." And Robert J Shade's " Forbes Road." -- All three very enjoyable.

Posted by: Nnfield4 at January 06, 2013 08:16 AM (sExEa)

"and the Carpetbaggers."

Which was made into 2 separate films.

Yeah, I remember reading him. I just wonder how well any of that holds up today.

Posted by: HH at January 06, 2013 08:16 AM (XXwdv)

65 Might want to check him out.

Posted by: HH at January 06, 2013 12:07 PM (XXwdv)

I have bookmarked his Amazon page for my next hunt and search. Thanks

Posted by: Vic at January 06, 2013 08:17 AM (53z96)

I read a pretty good book on Roman legion history - Winter Quarters - forgot who wrote it.

Iron Druid Series - Hounded Kevin Hearn? I think.

I always recommend, Alfred Bester, The stars are my destination . . . for a lot of reasons.

Posted by: simplemind at January 06, 2013 08:18 AM (NGsLN)

During the Christmas / New Year weeks, I read three profoundly Doomy books. Two of the three centered around our now-inevitable financial doom, Currency Wars (James Rickards) and Planet Ponzi (Mitch Feierstein). Both authors run hedge funds and have law degrees. Rickards concentrates on currencies, is a conservative, and pegs the Fed's furiously fast money-printing as being, in part, an old-fashioned beggar-thy-neighbor currency strike against China. Feierstein is left-of-center, emphasizes our unsustainable debt levels, and claims (with strong evidence) that central bank operations worldwide fit the definition of a Ponzi scheme. Both end up using - for their own reasons - the metaphor of a not-yet-released avalanche to describe how perilous our national and global economies are. (And, of course, the recent shenanigans in D.C. made both authors' snowy hillsides even more unstable.)

Rickards gives us a 5-7 year window before financial ruin. (In interviews, he is more pessimistic.) And Revelation-readers, take note: he sees a global currency as a likely outcome after the global crash. Feierstein reckons our (U.S.) actual indebtedness (Federal debt + unfounded obligations) as high as $202 trillion, well above the GDP of the entire world. It can't be paid, period - and as soon as the bond markets figure that out and act accordingly, the Ponzi game is over.

The third book, Harbingers (Jonathan Cahn), is not about economics at all, but rather about what happens when nations (two, in particular: ancient Israel and present-day U.S.) turn their backs on God after a history of great blessing. Spoiler alert: it doesn't end well. By Cahn's lights, we have been warned repeatedly to no avail and are pretty much on borrowed time already. His claims can seem pretty 'out there' because of their religiously prophetic content; as a Christian by conviction and a scientist by training, I was pleasantly surprised at how soberly Cahn wears the doom-colored glasses and how true his analysis rings. Cahn is an evangelical pastor of rabbinic Jewish descent leading a church in northern NJ.

Of course, our culture's economic rot and its moral/spiritual rot are closely intertwined. A recent post on market-ticker.org identified that connection admirably, and I recommend reading it

http://tinyurl.com/aqt7g2p
as well as the three doomy books. They are a bit of a bummer, to be sure, but better the heads-up about the path we're on and where it leads than to pull an Alfred E. Newman and ignore the whole thing.

Posted by: crisis du jour at January 06, 2013 08:18 AM (DFGPG)

68 Posted by: BCochran1981 at January 06, 2013 12:15 PM (GEICT) MMM, that's just gross, MMMM

Posted by: Oldsailors Poet, aka Jack July author of Amy Lynn available on Amazon. at January 06, 2013 08:18 AM (l86i3)

69 I don't know if any rons remember a guy named Harold Robbins, But when I was Fifteen I started reading his books. The two I remember most were the Pirate and the Carpetbaggers. Posted by: Oldsailors Poet, aka Jack July author of Amy Lynn available on Amazon. at January 06, 2013 12:09 PM (l86i3

Oh yes, I remember it well. There have been several movies made from that book as well. I went looking for it in Kindle a few months ago and it is not available.

That was hardcore porn for a horny teenager.

Posted by: Vic at January 06, 2013 08:18 AM (53z96)

70 That was hardcore porn for a horny teenager. Posted by: Vic at January 06, 2013 12:18 PM (53z96) Yes it was.

Posted by: Oldsailors Poet, aka Jack July author of Amy Lynn available on Amazon. at January 06, 2013 08:19 AM (l86i3)

71 Posted by: Eisenhorn at January 06, 2013 12:09 PM (OjQYm)

have saved that search as a link for my next "look for" search.

Posted by: Vic at January 06, 2013 08:20 AM (53z96)

72 Sharp zombie elbows. That and what does a zombie care about covering her curly bits?

Posted by: sTevo at January 06, 2013 08:21 AM (VMcEw)

73 For SF I used to reasd a lot of Warhammer 40,000 fiction. Much of it is really well done, since the stuff published by the Black Library (GW's publishing arm) is by pros and not fans. Eventually I just got tired of the dreary pessimism running through the entire series, with the exception of the Caiphas Cain books (he's sort of a Flashman although not nearly as cowardly). Face it, humanity is doomed and Chaos will rule.

Lately I am twiddling my thumbs waiting for the next installments of David Drake's Daniel Learly books, and the Lost Fleet series by Jack Campbell. Both smart military SF with lots of politics and good characterizations. In fact the Leary books are more or less SF reimaginings of Patrick O'Brien's Aubrey/Maturin books. Drake's society (the republic of Cinnabar anyway) is a mixture, socially, of late Republican Rome and Georgian England.

Posted by: Steve Skubinna at January 06, 2013 08:21 AM (xWNH+)

74 44 For more on crossbows try Cornwell's "Grail Quest" trilogy starting with "The Archer's Tale". You get a real feel for the life of the rank and file bowman during the early part of the Hundred Years War. BTW, A fourth in the series is coming out this week. It's about the Battle of Poitiers. My favorite Cornwell books are the "Saxon Chronicles". Vikings, King Alfred, bloody battle after bloody battle. Historical fiction doesn't get any better than that. Start with the first and work your way through. He's not done with them yet and I can't wait to read the next one.

Posted by: Tuna at January 06, 2013 08:22 AM (M/TDA)

75 Seamus, my dad did the Anzio to Rome thing, too.30th reg. Reading The Secret Servant by Daniel Silva. Good, if you like Flynn, you should like his Gabriel Allon series. His other books are good, too.

Posted by: bigred. at January 06, 2013 08:23 AM (mIcI8)

76 The Noble House(another Book Thread recommendation from over a year ago), after the first couple thousand pages I really enjoyed it. In fact I liked it so much I was prompted to buy the TV mini series fashioned after it(starring Pierce Brosnan) from the 80s or such and it really sucked. They omitted the whole story line about the Russian spy network and a lot of other things.

Posted by: sawhorse at January 06, 2013 12:15 PM (MVgm3)

I have the book and the movie which I ordered. I like both. As for cutting major portions you do have to make allowances for the length of the book and the budget.

They even cut some of the stuff out of Shogun and that was a long long mini-series.

Posted by: Vic at January 06, 2013 08:23 AM (53z96)

77 2 more fucking days.

Posted by: garrett at January 06, 2013 08:23 AM (HG81e)

78 I can't believe the wait is almost over.

Posted by: garrett at January 06, 2013 08:24 AM (HG81e)

79 Has anyone read John Scalzi's "Redshirts"?

The first five chapters are free online, through John Scalzi's website, or on Tor's site. The idea of the story seems rather simple....people on away teams seem to die an awful lot. Disposable people, just the kind of people that might wear a red shirt in an episode of Star Trek. While certain other people are always saved just in the nick of time. A couple of new 'red shirts' are assigned to the Intrepid, and quickly begin to realize that things just aren't quite...kosher. Their fellow crew members always seem to vanish right before the Captain and First Officer show up...almost always with a nearly impossible task that has to be completed in record time...or 'asking' for volunteers for a dangerous mission.

John Scalzi is also the author of "Old Man's War", "The Ghost Brigades", "The Last Colony", and "Zoe's Tale", (and you can get them all on Kindle). His writing is very Heinlein-esque, though his female characters are more fully developed...and aren't presented as little more than mental eye candy the way Heinlein did. Very good read....

I'm thinking of buying Redshirts, assuming it's available for Kindle...I haven't checked Amazon yet. The first five chapters make the book seem pretty interesting though.

Posted by: Sticky Wicket at January 06, 2013 08:25 AM (L7hol)

80 Also I am one book away from finishing Steven Kent's Clone series, about a future where the military, at least the enlisted, are all clones. While at times it gets over the top it does provoke some serious thought as to what social issues, including civil rights, may arise from widespread human cloning.

There's a subtext in which the protagonist, Wayson Harris, ponders to what extent he is really autonomous and not driven by genetic programming.

Posted by: Steve Skubinna at January 06, 2013 08:26 AM (xWNH+)

81 Yes it was.

Posted by: Oldsailors Poet, aka Jack July author of Amy Lynn

Says the guy who wrote a fan bio of Ginger Lynn's sister, Amy.

Posted by: garrett at January 06, 2013 08:28 AM (HG81e)

82 http://tinyurl.com/a6y2lsf School girl zombie

Posted by: BCochran1981 at January 06, 2013 08:29 AM (GEICT)

83 53 Agree..From the introductory quote to the vey last page.

Posted by: Tuna at January 06, 2013 08:29 AM (M/TDA)

84 If anyone enjoys reading about submarines I reccomend Run Silent Run Deep and Dust on the Sea by Edward L Beach.

Posted by: Oldsailors Poet, aka Jack July author of Amy Lynn available on Amazon. at January 06, 2013 08:29 AM (l86i3)

85 That crap is just sick. Yes Virginia, that's judgmental. Deal with it.

Posted by: VADM (Red) Cuthbert Collingwood (Mentioned in Dispatches) at January 06, 2013 08:30 AM (p4U6S)

86 I'd stake her.... http://tinyurl.com/a7fb7yx

Posted by: BCochran1981 at January 06, 2013 08:30 AM (GEICT)

87 Says the guy who wrote a fan bio of Ginger Lynn's sister, Amy. Posted by: garrett at January 06, 2013 12:28 PM (HG81e) Hey, I wouldn't give away your books ending.

Posted by: Oldsailors Poet, aka Jack July author of Amy Lynn available on Amazon. at January 06, 2013 08:30 AM (l86i3)

88 To anyone interested, the Travis McGee PI books by John D. MacDonald are getting released to Kindle this coming Tuesday.

Posted by: waelse1 at January 06, 2013 08:31 AM (k1oMF)

89 Hi zombie Jenna http://tinyurl.com/am3z2q2

Posted by: BCochran1981 at January 06, 2013 08:31 AM (GEICT)

90 To anyone interested, the Travis McGee PI books by John D. MacDonald are getting released to Kindle this coming Tuesday.

Posted by: waelse1 at January 06, 2013 12:31 PM (k1oMF)

I have read all of those and still have quite a few of them. Toward the end there they became very very dark. McDonald died shortly after that.

Posted by: Vic at January 06, 2013 08:32 AM (53z96)

91 Slutty zombies http://tinyurl.com/9woqzy5

Posted by: BCochran1981 at January 06, 2013 08:34 AM (GEICT)

92 Right now I'm waiting for the third book in the Day by Day Armageddon series to be transferred to my island's library branch. I've really enjoyed the first two, especially the first. I'm worried the dog's going to meet her demise in the last book due to some disturbing dog-related scenes in the second one. If that happens, I'll lose my shit.

Posted by: Princess Angelina Contessa Louisa Francesca...III at January 06, 2013 08:34 AM (Y+woW)

Sorry, OSP. Big Ginger Lynn fan, from way back. Couldn't help myself.

Seriously? Vic is the only other moron ready for book 14 of The Wheel of Time?

I've been waiting half my life to finish this damned series!

Posted by: garrett at January 06, 2013 08:35 AM (HG81e)

94 LOL, they are asking $12 for those very old Travis McGee books on the Kindle. Still gouging I see. .

Posted by: Vic at January 06, 2013 08:35 AM (53z96)

95 Seriously? Vic is the only other moron ready for book 14 of The Wheel of Time?

I've been waiting half my life to finish this damned series!

Posted by: garrett at January 06, 2013 12:35 PM (HG81e)

I hope you missed that post by "Spoiler McSpoilsport" yesterday who claims to have read an advance copy of it. He posted some crap about the ending that I hope is NOT true.

Posted by: Vic at January 06, 2013 08:37 AM (53z96)

96 Posted by: BCochran1981 at January 06, 2013 12:34 PM (GEICT) You get a hold of something you're like a dog with a bone. However, don't take that as complaining.

Posted by: Oldsailors Poet, aka Jack July author of Amy Lynn available on Amazon. at January 06, 2013 08:38 AM (l86i3)

97 I ran into an interesting series, all named with the series title "God's Lions" by someone named John Lyman.

You have just about everything: Bible Code, Vatican, anti-Christ, demons, secret societies, Israeli Mossad veterans, computer experts, the lot. The plots are pretty good, but the writing varies hugely between the 3 books so far written.

The first one read ok, with an occasional irritating run-on sentence. The second book was terribly written, with filler paragraphs explaining the history of a place and which did not contribute anything to the story (such as the date and who built the current St. Peter's); seemed to be just stuck in there for no reason except filler.

The third novels reads much better, so I am assuming they got a better editor for the author, which is sort of interesting in that you can see what a difference a good editor makes for a novelist.

Now I am hooked on this stupid series because of the plot line and am waiting for more of them on Kindle.

One thing, the writer pushes marriage for priests, which is sort of a back story and irritating to a lot of Catholics, including me, so I figure the author is probably a Jesuit writing under a pen name, since there is a lot of inside info about the workings of the Vatican.

Posted by: Miss Marple at January 06, 2013 08:38 AM (GoIUi)

76, Vic, Noble House had a spy story? Apparently I am going to have to re-read it. But not before I re-read Shogun which I adore, so much that I bought the miniseries too and the book for Kindle since I read my paperback copy to pieces.

OSP, I got your book but I have to read the library stuff first as they want it back for some strange reason.

Also, you can find nearly all Sunday Book Thread books in my librarything.com account which is under Tonestaple. Just look for the collection "Sunday Book Thread".

Posted by: Tonestaple at January 06, 2013 08:41 AM (BGruy)

89Hi zombie Jenna

---

Damn, I knew the name of the movie and when/where I was when I watched it, before I clicked the link.

Damn you Netflix...

Posted by: sunny at January 06, 2013 08:41 AM (5tz1s)

100 96 Posted by: BCochran1981 at January 06, 2013 12:34 PM (GEICT) --------------- You get a hold of something you're like a dog with a bone. However, don't take that as complaining. Posted by: Oldsailors Poet, aka Jack July author of Amy Lynn available on Amazon. at January 06, 2013 12:38 PM (l86i3)

Posted by: BCochran1981 at January 06, 2013 08:41 AM (GEICT)

101

>>He posted some crap about the ending that I hope is NOT true.

Aes Sedai daisy chain? It has to happen.

Posted by: garrett at January 06, 2013 08:42 AM (HG81e)

102 Vic, Noble House had a spy story?

Yes, but it was kind of a sideline story to add to the many complications that Ian Dunross had to deal with.

Posted by: Vic at January 06, 2013 08:43 AM (53z96)

103 I hope everyone has read Infidel by Ayaan Hirsi Ali. It is an Auto biography detailing an African Girls experiences with the Muzztards and tells about how they operate in Europe. It's a really good educational read.

Posted by: Oldsailors Poet, aka Jack July author of Amy Lynn available on Amazon. at January 06, 2013 08:44 AM (l86i3)

104 Aes Sedai daisy chain? It has to happen.

Posted by: garrett at January 06, 2013 12:42 PM (HG81e)

That comes in the unauthorized book 15 by "Pornpress LLC".

Posted by: Vic at January 06, 2013 08:44 AM (53z96)

105 "and the Carpetbaggers."
You're reading a Hillary bio???

Posted by: andycanuck at January 06, 2013 08:45 AM (jPVBi)

106 "and the Carpetbaggers." You're reading a Hillary bio??? Posted by: andycanuck at January 06, 2013 12:45 PM (jPVBi) It would not be plural, but a good name none the less.

Posted by: Oldsailors Poet, aka Jack July author of Amy Lynn available on Amazon. at January 06, 2013 08:46 AM (l86i3)

107 That's not Carpetmunchers

Posted by: Vic at January 06, 2013 08:47 AM (53z96)

108 103 I hope everyone has read Infidel by Ayaan Hirsi Ali. It is an Auto biography detailing an African Girls experiences with the Muzztards and tells about how they operate in Europe. It's a really good educational read. Posted by: Oldsailors Poet, aka Jack July author of Amy Lynn available on Amazon. at January 06, 2013 12:44 PM (l86i3) Hirsi in a formal debate with real moderation. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TFvklPpGZtA

Posted by: Grumpy the Younger at January 06, 2013 08:47 AM (jts1f)

109 Daddy had some Harold Robbins stuff on the top shelf in his closet where a lot of paperbacks lived, and not because they were smutty; it was just where the paperbacks lived. And I do recall not reading it because we weren't supposed to, but it was a houseful of girls.

Posted by: Tonestaple at January 06, 2013 08:48 AM (BGruy)

110 Many thanks to Oregon Muse for picking up the book thread last year. And thank you for posting the links. Sometimes it helps narrow down the search to have the thread topic. So here are the topics to go with the links above (re-posting part 1 from last week):

2012 Index

2012Jan01   no topic
2012Jan02   Kindle Recommendations
2012Jan08   no topic
2012Jan15   Moron Authors
2012Jan16   Kindle review
2012Jan22   Liberty and Tyranny/Levin
2012Jan29   Why Men Rule/Goldberg
2012Feb05   Coming Apart/Murray and The People's Money/Rasmussen
2012Feb12   Magazines (periodicals)
2012Feb19   no topic
2012Feb26   The Devil Is Real/Louvin and Thinking, Fast and Slow/Kahneman
2012Mar04   Show Me the Money
2012Mar11   no thread
2012Mar18   no thread
2012Mar25   The Forgotten Man/Shlaes
2012Apr01   Rules For Radicals
2012Apr08   Easter
2012Apr15   April Anniversary
2012Apr22   Gone To the Dogs
2012Apr29   The Bear Necessities
2012May06   Native Mode
2012May13   1/32nd
2012May20   Maize and Crabcakes
2012May27   Memorial Day
2012Jun03   The Law/Bastiat
2012Jun10   Shadenboner/Wisconsin
2012Jun17   South of the Border
2012Jun24   Revisionism
2012Jul01   Independence Day
2012Jul08   no topic
2012Jul15   MOAR LONGMIRE
2012Jul19   EBooks Outsold Hardcover
2012Jul22   eReader
2012Jul29   no thread
2012Aug05   Agony of Defeat
2012Aug12   Old School Sci-Fi
2012Aug19   Books I read when I was young
2012Aug23   Irregular Mid-Week Book Thread
2012Aug26   Books Into Movies
2012Sep02   Conventional Wisdom
2012Sep09   When We Were Very Young
2012Sep16   Media Beclowning
2012Sep23   Wild West
2012Sep30   The Crescent and the Scimitar
2012Oct07   The Great Debate
2012Oct14   The Presidential Library
2012Oct21   Leftovers
2012Oct28   Sudden Departures
2012Nov04   Late Halloween
2012Nov11   Progressive Revolutionary Progress
2012Nov18   Nothing In Particular
2012Nov25   Thanksgiving Leftovers
2012Dec02   Brotherly Love
2012Dec09   Graphic Novel
2012Dec16   Everything Old Is New Again
2012Dec23   Having a National Conversation
2012Dec30   End of the Year/Moron Authors

This includes a few stray mid-week book-oriented threads.

Posted by: throughtheravenglass at January 06, 2013 08:49 AM (Z0YZC)

111 Apparently I am going to have to re-read it. But not before I re-read Shogun which I adore, so much that I bought the miniseries too and the book for Kindle since I read my paperback copy to pieces.

The first two book that I bought for the Kindle was Shogun and Nobel House. My pb copy of Shogun was in worn shape, my pb copy of Nobel House was worn when I bought it and is held together now with tape.

I literally have read those books to death.

Posted by: Vic at January 06, 2013 08:50 AM (53z96)

112

Posted by: Miss Marple at January 06, 2013 12:38 PM (GoIUi)

Ever read the Illumanati books by Robert Anton Wilson?

Covers pretty much everything.

Posted by: HH at January 06, 2013 08:51 AM (XXwdv)

113

Infidel by Ayaan Hirsi Ali

Posted by: Oldsailors Poet, aka Jack July author of Amy Lynn available on Amazon. at January 06, 2013 12:44 PM (l86i3)

What a life she has had...that book was a scary eye opener to Muslims and Tribalism.

Posted by: sunny at January 06, 2013 08:51 AM (5tz1s)

114 not be plural
That would depend on how many H.C. does, wouldn't it? (BBL)

Posted by: andycanuck at January 06, 2013 08:51 AM (jPVBi)

115 Is OregonMuse on goodreads?

Posted by: votermom at January 06, 2013 08:51 AM (glHAg)

116 not be plural That would depend on how many H.C. does, wouldn't it? (BBL) Posted by: andycanuck at January 06, 2013 12:51 PM (jPVBi) Hmm?

Posted by: Oldsailors Poet, aka Jack July author of Amy Lynn available on Amazon. at January 06, 2013 08:52 AM (l86i3)

117 The Carpetbaggers IS out on Kindle now. I don't know how I missed it.

http://is.gd/rbGoKu

Posted by: Vic at January 06, 2013 08:52 AM (53z96)

118 Must take Doggeh for a walk, OT, my youngest just learned a valuble microwave lesson. Do not put an Olive Garden breadstick in the Microwave for 1:30 sec.

Posted by: Oldsailors Poet, aka Jack July author of Amy Lynn available on Amazon. at January 06, 2013 08:53 AM (l86i3)

119 The walking dead. Yes.

Posted by: mama winger at January 06, 2013 08:54 AM (P6QsQ)

120 @103: I checked that out from my library when it was a new release. Could only keep it for one week, finished it in three days and it was horrifying. I've used quotes and stories from it when my more liberal "YAY MULTICULTURALISM!" friends try debating me.

Posted by: NR Pax at January 06, 2013 08:57 AM (QkEg0)

121 Mrs. Guido's hand shakes when shes holding a glass. I've tried to help by asking her to make a toast at parties mocking her by yelling earthquake. Its supposedly neuromuscular (shes young and not Parkinson's) but she won't go to an orthopod. Today, (this thread is an omen) I realized most likely she is turning into a zombie (zombiosis) . Again i'm a great huband so I'm trying to help. I told her to make a list of the people she wants to kill and eat once she is fully zombified. So I'm wondering is there any other steps we should take as this progresses? Should she keep a diary? It might be interesting. She will be a hot zombie.

Posted by: Guido at January 06, 2013 09:03 AM (XLuH2)

122 John Lyman, from the picture on his site, seems to be a doctor, as that is the outfit he is wearing.

Posted by: chip dillard at January 06, 2013 09:08 AM (Jsiw/)

123 I'm reading that old classic, "Foxe's Book of Martyrs", first published in 1563. It's ancient, and timely, all at once. It's also free on Kindle.

Posted by: mama winger at January 06, 2013 09:10 AM (P6QsQ)

124 Vic Agree on The Iron Druid green weenie thing but Hearne seems to be focusing more on the theme of taking responsibility for one's actions lately. What I really enjoy about his books are the characterizations of the gods from the many mythologies. The last book goes into detail about the Romans wanting their own pantheon not just a renaming of the Greeks'. Atticus has to deal with two separate but equal groups of classical gods, each one with suble and not so suble differences in personality. Funny. And I love Atticus' wolfhound. Great doggie.

Posted by: Tuna at January 06, 2013 09:10 AM (M/TDA)

125 124 Suble= subtle. My bad.

Posted by: Tuna at January 06, 2013 09:11 AM (M/TDA)

126 Not to be a brown-noser, but I just finished OldSailorsPoet's book. Loved it. Can hardly wait for a sequel. Don't know the why's of not having a kindle version. Would prefer it myself. How about publishing a set of prequels on Kindle for some of the best characters. Would love to see the back story on uncle and T. Or a whole book on each for that matter.

Posted by: Mephitis at January 06, 2013 09:13 AM (GLwVs)

127 Posted by: Tuna at January 06, 2013 01:10 PM (M/TDA)

He's not overbearing with it, just a few comments here and there. It isn't enough to put me off on the series. I do like it.

I do hope it doesn't bog down like most series do after the 3rd book. I am only about half-way through with the second book now.

Posted by: Vic at January 06, 2013 09:14 AM (53z96)

128 I just ordered The Fourth Turning based on recommendations I received. I haven't gotten the book yet, but I've been poking around on the related website a bit. See the links in the left column for the definitions of their terms: http://www.fourthturning.com/ It was published in 1997. The authors have a cyclic/generational theory of history. We have just exited the Unraveling phase and have now entered the Crisis phase. The last three Crisis phases in America were the Revolution, the Civil War, and the Depression/World War II. So if they are even close to being correct, we are really in for it.

Posted by: rickl at January 06, 2013 09:18 AM (sdi6R)

129 Vic The 4th was ok. The latest shows a real improvement and the series is picking up speed again. Long may Atticus navigate the mythologies of the world!

Posted by: Tuna at January 06, 2013 09:21 AM (M/TDA)

130 good

Posted by: Vic at January 06, 2013 09:27 AM (53z96)

131 130 Another plus: Atticus is just plain funny.

Posted by: Tuna at January 06, 2013 09:30 AM (M/TDA)

132 I have just finished Matt Bracken's "Enemies Foreign and Domestic" and have now started on "Domestic Enemies", the follow-up. Pretty scary books, I just hope they don't end up being prophetic.

Posted by: GGE of the Moron Horde, NC Chapter at January 06, 2013 09:32 AM (yh0zB)

133

I got a Kindle Fire for Christmas. Still playing with it. Haven't read for a long enough time to see if it would be harder on my eyes than the old Kindle.

Still haven't figured out if there's an easy way to refresh a web page like this one (without swooshing all the way up to the top).

Posted by: Mama AJ at January 06, 2013 09:36 AM (SUKHu)

134 This is dangerous for science and for the nation. The claim that Republicans are anti-science is a staple of Democratic political rhetoric, but bipartisan support among politicians for national investment in science, especially basic research, is still strong. For more than 40 years, US government science spending has commanded a remarkably stable 10% of the annual expenditure for non-defence discretionary programmes. In good economic times, science budgets have gone up; in bad times, they have gone down. There have been more good times than bad, and science has prospered.

In the current period of dire fiscal stress, one way to undermine this stable funding and bipartisan support would be to convince Republicans, who control the House of Representatives, that science is a Democratic special interest. . . The US scientific community must decide if it wants to be a Democratic interest group or if it wants to reassert its value as an independent national asset.

Most scientists and science hobbyists would say that there is basic scientific research going on at CERN, but the equivalent effort in the US, the superconducting super collider in Texas, was officially killed off by a Democratic Congress on October 21, 1993.

Posted by: Galileo Galilei at January 06, 2013 09:36 AM (e8kgV)

135 Just got my first book up on Amazon in Kindle only. I am looking for people to buy of course but also to review: Author (me) Paul Trowbridge Title: Armageddon Now (The End of Once and Future War) The Cover has my pseudonym of T. REX but Amazon has the author as Paul Trowbridge. Book Description and Link: http://tinyurl.com/a4puqum Prophecies of the end of the world are as old as human civilization. The most famous of these is the prophecy of the War of Armageddon as described in the book of Revelation. Apocalyptic visions abound of the end of the world, of nuclear war, of all the nations of the world gathered together in the valley of Har Megeddon, for one last war over Jerusalem just 55 miles north of the valley of Jezreel (Har Megeddon). But humanity is already deeply committed to the last battle, the last war. We will show that we are nearly at the end of a one hundred year cycle of wars, where the last war creates the conditions for the next and more terrible war. That the governments of man are coming to an end, to be replaced by a prophetic, at first, invisible government of God. Armageddon, far from being something to fear, is to mark the end of the failed experiment of man ruling man by external forces and means. In a very real, yet mystical sense, this war is taking place in each human being, to finally come to the

Posted by: Jehu at January 06, 2013 09:41 AM (cSD32)

136 Right this moment, I have going-
Ship Ablaze by Edward T. O'Donnel
Naked Empire by Terry Goodkind
A Private In The Texas Rangers by John Miller Morris
I just finished-
Full Black by Brad Thor
Founders by James Wesley, Rawles

Naked Empire pretty much bores me to actual tears.
A Private in the Texas Rangers is Anti-2nd Amendment, believe it or not.

Posted by: EROWMER at January 06, 2013 09:42 AM (kxlCQ)

137 @133: Mama AJ, just touch the tab at the top of the page. That will bring out the address bar and the refresh icon.

Posted by: NR Pax at January 06, 2013 09:42 AM (QkEg0)

138

The claim that Republicans are anti-science is a staple of Democratic political rhetoric

A good professional friend of mine, a far-leftist, is a physicist at a Department of Energy research lab. He mused to me recently about how the lab prospers under Republican administrations and feels budget crunches under Democratic ones.

Bright as he is in scientific matters, he just goes on doggie-head-tilt when he ponders that situation.

It's the denial stage. The anger and then the acceptance will come when he figures it out.

Posted by: crisis du jour at January 06, 2013 09:45 AM (DFGPG)

139 And Mama Winger, I just bought Fox's Book Of Martyrs! Was in Lifeway getting my Daddy'sBible re-bound.

Posted by: EROWMER at January 06, 2013 09:45 AM (kxlCQ)

140 Other reading lately has been end of the world stuff. Found a couple of good authors available in Kindle format that I've really enjoyed. 299 days series is a little pricy at ten bucks a pop, but good quality story. another author I've enjoyed is TJ Reeder. Very roughly written, but good story underneath. These are very reasonable priced at $2.99 and some at .99. None as good as Molon Labe by Boston T Party, but worth the time and money.

Posted by: Mephitis at January 06, 2013 09:47 AM (GLwVs)

141

Woo hoo, thank you, NR Pax!

Posted by: Mama AJ at January 06, 2013 09:48 AM (SUKHu)

142 Naked Empire pretty much bores me to actual tears.

Naked empire is the beginning of the end of the series. The next two are just as boring. Even the last one is boring up until almost the end.

This was another good series that started crashing after the third book.

Posted by: Vic at January 06, 2013 09:49 AM (53z96)

143 @141: Glad to help. A Kindle Fire was a gift to myself last year and I've been enjoying it. Not 100% thrilled with the browser, but I do like the machine in general.

Posted by: NR Pax at January 06, 2013 09:50 AM (QkEg0)

144 Someone recommended The Krone Experiment on a thread this week. I read that and the sequel, they were pretty engaging, though I have been sick and so might not be the best judge right now. But I did read them in two and a half days. I also read Riley's Rogues, which someone mentioned on here, finished Orthodoxy and just started The Amulet, by E. Nesbit. C.S. Lewis claimed some inspiration from her writing, so I thought I'd check it out. The woman knows how to tell a story, great pacing and the flow of the prose just pulls you along. It's written for children I guess, but I think that elevates the difficulty of writing and makes the end result very clear and effective--without dead spots or superfluous detail.

Posted by: .87c at January 06, 2013 09:50 AM (4Vd/Y)

145 RE: Psalm 115. In the Left, we see a different kind of idol, one with no physical substance, but still the work of human endeavour. It is an almighty State, designed to dispense miracles (medicine) and food from nothing, and as with the Psalm, those who believe in their idol are as unfeeling and insensate as the object of their worship. Nothing can convince them that things do not pour from the limitless bounty of their object of worship, even when they are the ones targeted for its wrath.

Posted by: Cato at January 06, 2013 09:58 AM (xFGqN)

146 #128 I have had The Fourth Turning on my bookshelf since it first came out. I bought it based on an interview I saw on C-SPAN.

I highly recommend it. Agree we are heading for a crisis which will change the country, whether for good or ill I don't know.

So I have stored the usual stuff for emergencies and have done so for some time.

It's a really good book, but in places it will make your hair stand on end.

Posted by: Miss Marple at January 06, 2013 10:05 AM (GoIUi)

147 144 Someone recommended The Krone Experiment on a thread this week.

Wasn't me, but I did like the book when I read it. Very solid hard sci-fi (that means it sticks pretty closely to the actual physical laws of the universe) with a central mystery that is interesting to watch as it unfolds. I didn't know there was a sequel; the original book seemed like a very self-contained story. I'll have to check that out.

I've been rereading the Sandman Slim series. Someone earlier on the thread mentioned that religious belief might interfere with enjoyment of the Iron Druid series. Triple that for this series.

By that I do not mean that it exhibits a nasty, childish, leftist, directed hostility toward the Christian religion, as the Golden Compass series does. But it takes the Heaven and Hell elements of the Christian story and makes out of them an urban fantasy in which Hell is really really bad, but could be worse; Lucifer has his good points along with the acknowledged completely evil corrupting ones, and...well, in the interest of avoiding spoilers, I'll just say that the messing with the mythology does not stop there. But if that doesn't get in your way, you have something that is, blasphemy aside, somewhere in the Monster Hunters/They Tell Me I'm The Bad Guy violent urban monster fantasy axis, is fun to read, and which is populated with interesting characters. Also, zombies. And stuff blows up. Four books so far, and more on the way.

Posted by: Splunge at January 06, 2013 10:13 AM (2IW5Q)

148 When you read a good book it is like an author is right there. Sitting and talking to you right there. That is why I don't like to read books.

Posted by: Jack Handey at January 06, 2013 10:22 AM (62oVO)

149 Some thoughts about all the Vampire/Zombie themed movies and books of late: Back when Christianity was being persecuted and the Catholic Church banned the Bible the Bible themes became oral traditions, such as the story of King Arthur (Lady in the Lake = Church; Sword in Stone = Word of God; The King and the Land are One = Jesus is Lord of the Earth etc) Now as people have stopped reading the Bible or have stupid pastors that do not understand it at all, the themes once again become oral tradition, our movies and books about vampires and zombies: Vampires: Cannot see their reflections = No ability for self-reflection, or repentance. Allergic to Sunlight = Self explanatory. Allergic to Holy Water = Self explanatory. Can only be killed by a wooden stake through the heart = Symbolic of only the cross of Christ and end the vampire nature of men. How many people do you know that exist now by drinking the life of others, what do you think liberalism creates in a human being? So forth and so on. Zombies: Dead but animated flesh...hard to kill, yet stupid = Symbolic of what the Bible calls the "flesh," the unregenerate nature of man. And now with most of the people anesthetized by one "ism," or another in the earth, it is like a sleepwalking zombie horde filling the earth, and once bitten by an "ism," infected soul, you also become one. Strange how much wisdom resides with the masses, even when the ministry of truth suppresses nearly all the truth in this day and age.

Posted by: Jehu at January 06, 2013 10:24 AM (cSD32)

150 Just curious if any of the Horde out there picked up Sir Robert of Cheshire-The Great Jueyjua Hunt from last weeks review? It's a Kindle book currently.

Posted by: Secret Squirrels balls Und sheft at January 06, 2013 10:32 AM (0SmH0)

151 Grumpy, guess my mileage varied with regards to Safehold by Weber. I read Off Armageddon Reef and first I had too many flashbacks to Brin's second Uplift trilogy and even Weber's own Mutineer Moon book. And frankly the main character, the one forcing Safehold to change, I could not care about.

Posted by: Anna Puma (+SmuD) at January 06, 2013 10:39 AM (HXcdb)

152 87C I had mentioned The Krone Experiment. It was a free Kindle download when I did. And there is a sequel.

Very hard science fiction with political complications. Niven's short story The Whole Man first broached the subject but on Mars.

Posted by: Anna Puma (+SmuD) at January 06, 2013 10:42 AM (HXcdb)

153 yep, Squirrel I got and read it. Am planning on reading it to the kids and Will let you know how they like it.

Posted by: Mama AJ on Fire at January 06, 2013 10:50 AM (SUKHu)

154 I like the safehold series by Weber. My problem now is the latest book costs an arm and a leg on the Kindle.

Posted by: Vic at January 06, 2013 10:52 AM (53z96)

155 Back when Christianity was being persecuted and the Catholic Church banned the Bible the Bible themes became oral traditions, such as the story of King Arthur (Lady in the Lake = Church; Sword in Stone = Word of God; The King and the Land are One = Jesus is Lord of the Earth etc)

It was less that the Catholics banned the Bible, and more that there simply weren't enough people around who could even read it. Remember, from 700 to 1000 or so AD, the Arabs blocked the supply of papyrus and, later, wood pulp paper (which the West didn't know how to make then).

And this stuff you mentioned isn't Christian in the slightest. For instance you seem to be implying that the Word of God may only be wielded by the rightful heir to the throne. Even a divine-right monarchist wouldn't go that far. (A Muslim caliphist might.)

Posted by: boulder hobo at January 06, 2013 11:01 AM (QTHTd)

156 Vic care to elaborate on why you like the Safehold series? I bought the digital ARC of first book. Bad thing about digital is, if you don't like it can't sell the blasted thing.

Posted by: Anna Puma (+SmuD) at January 06, 2013 11:02 AM (HXcdb)

157 boulder hobo, check the morning thread. Ferreted out of Project Gutenberg a few books about Spain under Islam.

Posted by: Anna Puma (+SmuD) at January 06, 2013 11:04 AM (HXcdb)

158 147 Yeah, it would have been a great mystery if the person who recommended it hadn't given away the cause in the recommendation. I spent the first half of the book enjoying it, but thinking: I wonder how much better this would be if I didn't know the answer? Would I figure it out? But I probably wouldn't have read it at all with a less descriptive mention, so what do ya do? The second one is called Krone Ascending, I think it's only an e-book. I enjoyed it, it's a bit different though, takes place over a longer period of time for one thing.

Posted by: .87c at January 06, 2013 11:09 AM (4Vd/Y)

159 I am not sure how to say why I like a book. Weber is a good writer in general. I have never read a book by him that I did not like. He has good plots, good characters, and the essential elements of a novel; a beginning, a middle, and an end. The plot moves along nicely without getting too bogged down spending twenty pages describing the grass in front of an elm tree.

On top of that with the first book I thought the idea was something new, other than the retrograde civilization.

Posted by: Vic at January 06, 2013 11:14 AM (53z96)

160 Thanks for the recommendation, Anna Puma! Haha, my last post reads a little more disgruntled than I meant it. But I read both, and only because you took the time to recommend it. So thank you! Do you have any other hard-ish SciFi recommendations? I can't think of too many I've read, but I've been getting more interested in that category. Only one I can remember that was at least fairly hard scifi and was totally consistent and scientifically correc with the departures was The Mote in God's Eye. The authors did a great job reasoning that out.

Posted by: .87c at January 06, 2013 11:17 AM (4Vd/Y)

161 It was less that the Catholics banned the Bible, and more that there simply weren't enough people around who could even read it.

--------------------

That will come as quite the surprise to those Christians burned at the stake, strangled or jailed for printing or merely possessing Bibles in their own language.

Posted by: mama winger at January 06, 2013 11:28 AM (P6QsQ)

162 Reading the five Wrinke in Time books.

Posted by: NCKate at January 06, 2013 11:32 AM (XwChs)

163 About the only drawback to driving to work is that my reading time has taken a hit. My wife and others are into audio books, but they just don't do it for me. I simply can't concentrate on them the way I do when reading. Over Christmas vacation I did read "But Didn't We Have Fun," which chronicles the "pioneer era" of baseball history, dating from the time that the Knickerbockers formalized the rule to the advent of pro baseball in the late 1860s. Really good history, though he doesn't get into too many different personalities.

Posted by: Paul Zummo at January 06, 2013 11:34 AM (jZCP2)

164 You folks talking about the lack of people reading the bible are missing the 500 ton elephant on the couch.

Up until the King James bible was commissioned all the bibles were written in Latin which very few people knew. In addition, before the Gutenberg press came along there were very few of them because they written by hand with a lot of embellishments and fancy drawings.

This limited them to the upper class nobility and the priests.

Posted by: Vic at January 06, 2013 11:37 AM (53z96)

165 Several people mentioned "A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court", so I'd like to recommend two other books in the same genre. L. Sprague de Camp's "Lest Darkness Fall", (1941) An engineer finds himself in 6th century AD Rome and tries to prevent the dark ages by defeating the Byzantine Army Lead by Belisarius, thus changing history. Before reading this book, read the Wikipedia article on Flavius Belisarius. Poul Anderson's "The High Crusade", (1960) A sort of reverse CYiKAC, but without time travel. An alien space ship lands in 14th century England. The local Baron and his overwhelm the very human aliens, but the ship goes out pilot back to the home planet. Stuck there, the do the only logical thing and decide to conquer the planet.

Posted by: jbarntt at January 06, 2013 11:38 AM (UNFot)

166 This limited them to the upper class nobility and the priests.

Posted by: Vic at January 06, 2013 03:37 PM (53z96)

----------

by law and papal edict, with penalties, which penalties continued after the invention of the printing press, up until the 1800s. It's a matter of history.

I have no axe to grind with my Catholic brothers and sisters, whom I love and respect. But you can't sweep away history and pretend that people were not martyred and persecuted for possession of and printing of the Bible. It happened for centuries.

Posted by: mama winger at January 06, 2013 11:42 AM (P6QsQ)

167 by law and papal edict, with penalties, which penalties continued after the invention of the printing press, up until the 1800s. It's a matter of history.

Since the English translation was for the Church of England they were all considered heretics anyway and if I am not mistaken the King was excommunicated.

Also if I am not mistake, the English translation was the only non-Latin version available at the time other than the "new Testament" original written in Greek and the old testaments written in Hebrew.

Posted by: Vic at January 06, 2013 12:02 PM (53z96)

168 Anna: thanks for the link.

C R Haines's "Christianity and Islam" seems to be effectively an abridgement of de Gayangos, itself an abridgement of Maqqari: http://books.google.com/books?id=dRVlWhdJkZYC

Maqqari seems to be a pretty decent historian from what I'm reading, and he has sources we don't.

Posted by: boulder hobo at January 06, 2013 12:07 PM (QTHTd)

169 winger : That will come as quite the surprise to those Christians burned at the stake, strangled or jailed for printing or merely possessing Bibles in their own language.

Jehu was talking about the Arthurian legends, as they existed in the Dark Ages. At that time people weren't being martyred for possession of Bibles in their own language - because, before the late 1000s AD, there weren't enough such Bibles to censor.

In fact until Gregory VII, the Church was happy to provide Bible translations:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bible_translations_in_the_Middle_Ages

(1079 is when the Church tried to stop a Slavonic translation being used.)

Posted by: boulder hobo at January 06, 2013 12:14 PM (QTHTd)

170 The first complete English language translation of the bible was not done until 1539 with one called "The Great Bible". 1568 The "Bishop's Bible" was printed. Tis became the King James Version which I think was the first widespread one.

Posted by: Vic at January 06, 2013 12:29 PM (53z96)

171 153- mama aj Great! Hope your kids enjoy it!

Posted by: Secret Squirrels balls Und sheft at January 06, 2013 12:33 PM (0SmH0)

172 151 Grumpy, guess my mileage varied with regards to Safehold by Weber. I read Off Armageddon Reef and first I had too many flashbacks to Brin's second Uplift trilogy and even Weber's own Mutineer Moon book. And frankly the main character, the one forcing Safehold to change, I could not care about. Posted by: Anna Puma (+SmuD) at January 06, 2013 02:39 PM (HXcdb) I struggled to get started on the series because I found the premise a bit of a stretch. The first book also spent most of its energy on creating the world framework. However, being hungry for something new in the way of a series I went on to book 2 and got hooked despite the gory details of hull design and sail plans for wind powered ships.

Posted by: Grumpy the Younger at January 06, 2013 12:34 PM (jts1f)

173 Yesterday we had a discussion about the fragmentation of the Roman Empire, the whys and the wherefores. I presented a "new" view of the fabled collapse that says it wasn't so much of a collapse as it was a fragmentation. In that fragmentation the Church Bishops first established local dominions which eventually became countries.

If I am not mistaken this is the book that came from.

http://is.gd/VLDlOu

Posted by: Vic at January 06, 2013 12:43 PM (53z96)

174 87c, hard science fiction is a bit of a tough field. But here are a few.
The Heart of the Comet by Benford and Brin.
Lifeline by Anderson and Beason
Twistor by John Cramer

You are welcome boulder hobo, I need to read them myself. But as long as I have something to read and learn I live. To paraphrase.

Grumpy and Vic, glad both of you got through to find the series worthwhile.

Posted by: Anna Puma (+SmuD) at January 06, 2013 01:02 PM (HXcdb)

175 God is neither male nor female.

Posted by: steevy at January 06, 2013 01:34 PM (9XBK2)

176 Decided to start reading Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Homes works. A Study in Scarlet was very enjoyable and I'm starting The Sign of Four now.

Posted by: BornLib at January 06, 2013 01:54 PM (zpNwC)

177 Vic and Bolder Hobo You both make important points, and even left out that books of any sort before Gutenberg were fabulously expensive. However the early church circulated the writings of the early Apostles and they were read out loud in the churches. (Read small home meetings) It was not until the Catholic Apostasy that Apostolic writings were banned to the laity. And any reading done was done in a dead language that only the elite understood, sort of like what liberalism is today. Just like they are trying to ban the Constitution or Declaration of Independence (which strangely have the same sort of flow, internal wisdom and cadence as scripture) which are hardly even taught in our schools anymore, let alone followed by our elected officials. Think of the routine demeaning and hatred toward the Tea Party, about as inoffensive a bunch of folks as you can find. If we think the same forces are not at work today, as what crushed the spiritual light given to men by Christ, we are sadly mistaken. I mean the Tea Party in America fulfills the role of the Christians under Nero: Burn down the nation to rebuild in your own image, and blame the fire on the Christians (Tea Party) Both my main point and Mama Winger's. The other stuff is just the details which can vary and we can choose the set of historical facts as our lens, our viewpoints. But both of you are well read and know the signs of the times and the danger we face. That was my point about Arthurian legends and others arising to both disguise the Christian message and to make it available to the common man. Just as we are now experiencing common folklore that disguises spiritual reality, vis-a-vis Vampires and Zombies. Really in and of themselves these stories are stupid and boring, what gives these stories such force and popular consumption? The reason is that for the most part people are being starved for spiritual truth, few churches care or teach deeper spiritual knowledge or experience. It is why I come to sites like this, because at least most here are NOT religious, the greatest block to knowing God is any form of religion. That is why liberalism is inherently religious, the worship of state is a religion and effectively blocks a human being from God, same with all the "isms." People here hate liberalism, because they instinctively hate the religious spirit. Morons are closer to God than most religious folks of any stripe, even if they pretend to be atheists or agnostics. And it is soldiers, profane as they may be, that exemplify Christ's message of laying down their lives for others, sometimes total asshole strangers. In heaven there will be a lot of soldiers and few reporters or professors and no Utopians. And as Mama Winger my old LGF friend, I am not a Catholic-Basher in any sense. I love most Catholics and many have real walks with God, the church not withstanding. In fact portions of the current Catholic Church IMO are one of the last-men-standing against the rising barbarism of the world...God help us all.

Posted by: Jehu at January 06, 2013 02:06 PM (cSD32)

178 A Study in Scarlet was very enjoyable and I'm starting The Sign of Four now.

Posted by: BornLib at January 06, 2013 05:54 PM (zpNwC)

I downloaded that from Gutenburg this week and I intend to read it after finishing my current stack.

Posted by: Vic at January 06, 2013 02:29 PM (53z96)

179 Vic- Did u end up reading my book? If so what'd you think?

Posted by: Secret Squirrels balls Und sheft at January 06, 2013 08:03 PM (0SmH0)

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