What have you read recently? 2009 -2020

[Lsbcal]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rich_in_Tampa I know he's an old timer, but I just discovered Ken Follett and love it. Big John LeCarre fan. Anything by Updike. Got a Kindle 2 for my recent b'day and loading it up. Keep the suggestions coming.

If you like spy novels then a few author's I've read are:
David Ignatius, Agents of Innocence is reputed to be a fairly accurate picture of what a case officer actually does. James Woolsey, former CIA chief, is supposed to have liked this one.

Alan Furst, does a good job of describing WW2 conditions in Europe.
Check out the reviews on Amazon. Some I've read are Red Gold, Blood of Victory

Eric Ambler, A Coffin for Dimitrios -- writer discovers life story of common crook and murderer in central Europe, copywrite date is 1939

Charles Cumming, a new writer. A Spy by Nature -- young man interviews for MI5 and gets involved in operation against American agents in London. Apparently the author had a brief go at the intelligence world in real life.

And there is Stella Rimington's books I mentioned above.

[DangerMouse]

Moloka'i by Alan Brennert. This is probably the best book I have read for a long time, possibly in my top 5 of all time. I would highly recommend it. It's a real tear jerker, but a wonderful story.

[Urchina]

I just finished House Thinking, by Winifred Gallagher. It's about the field of environmental psychology, or how our environment affects us and helps create our experience, and how this relates to our homes. It takes a potentially very wonky subject and makes it very accessible and interesting.

Also, DH and I restarted our subscription to the New Yorker as our Christmas present to each other, so I've been intoxicated with Hendrik Hertzberg every week. God, I love his writing.

[F-One]

I tend to read non-fiction, last was Collapse: why societies choose to succeed or fail by Jared Diamond. He's a geographer but writes society/human development, wrote Guns, Germs and Steel. Both are good but Guns, Germs and Steel made a better case for how various cultures developed or not.

[Robert the Red]

Accelerando by Charles Stross -- what happens during and after the technological singularity
Soon I Will Be Invincible -- the first person story of a mad genius who tries to take over the world so he can gloat gloat gloat
Re-reading all of Jane Austen -- currently on Mansfield Park, and am thinking Fannie Price is really quite a drip

[ricthemic]

Anything by Harlan Coben, fiction and Ken Follet

[TeeRuh]

Wally Lamb's The Hour I First Believed; Rachel K's Telex from Cuba; Dennis Lehane's The Given Day; and of course The Story of Edward Sawtelle. Recent non-fiction included A Team of Rivals (great A. Lincoln book); Andrew Jackson, his life and times; Seabiscuit, an American Legend; and A Terrible Glory: Custer and the Little Bighorn-the last great battle of the American West. Oh and I read Obama's Dreams from my Father.

Like to read.

t.r.

[Martha]

Other good spy fiction is Daniel Silva's books with Gabriel Allon as a Mossad agent. Daniel Silva - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

I am reading Moscow Rules today.

[CuppaJoe]

Quote:

Originally Posted by DangerMouse Moloka'i by Alan Brennert. This is probably the best book I have read for a long time, possibly in my top 5 of all time. I would highly recommend it. It's a real tear jerker, but a wonderful story.

Thanks, I see Brennert has just published another one called, "Honolulu." Wonder how they compare to Michener's "Hawaii" which I loved.

[deserat]

Hillerman's series - starting on Rex Stout - reading Stockdale's books, too. Also have an unfinished Ludlum plus a bunch other waiting in the queue. I second the Daniel Silva books - also like Dick Francis. Oh, also reading Kathy Reich's books - Bones TV series is loosely based on the character.

To hijack thread - I also love the new TV series Life - probably because the lead guy was the guy in Band of Brothers. I'm a sucker for red hair....my husband is a redhead :-)

Here in Germany with AFN we're about a season behind - I was sad when they canceled new Amsterdam series.

For non-fiction books, I have my knitting design books, travel books and am going to pursue the Hazlitt Economics book mentioned, a CS Lewis book, and a 'get organized' book.

[Gotadimple]

Just finished The Ascent of Money by Niall Fergeson. Not an easy read. He does point out recessions, panics, and depressions occur when regulation of trading and banking practices is lax.

For fiction, also just finished The Whiskey Rebels by David Liss. Historical novel about life in early America. He focuses on financial subjects: this one about the impact of the creation of the Bank of the United States, funded by a tax on whiskey -- and it's impact on the economy, the rise of speculation and trading in bank stocks and subsequent panic (see lax regulation above).

[Moemg]

I just finished Kotlikoff's Spend to the End and I would have to say it was the most boring book I have ever read .Only buy it if you have insomnia as it will put you right to sleep .

[leftbucket]

Angela's Ashes by Frank McCourt is my current pre-St. Patty's Day read.

Being non-fiction dealing with Ireland and America during the Depression,
it'll make you appreciate even a really bad day in the market.

-LB

[Moemg]

Quote:

Originally Posted by leftbucket Angela's Ashes by Frank McCourt is my current pre-St. Patty's Day read. Being non-fiction dealing with Ireland and America during the Depression, it'll make you appreciate even a really bad day in the market. -LB

I read that years ago . Pretty depressing ! Another book along those lines is A Glass House .

[SonnyJim]

I just finished listening to "Confessions of an Economic Hit Man" by John Perkins. I have recently listened to the following:
Blink
Collapse
Freakonomics
In Defense of Food
Predictably Irrational
Stirring It Up
The Alchemy of Finance
The Botany of Desire
The Tipping Point
The World Without Us

I found out that our library has a digital version available for download as a book on tape or PDF that it has gone in with the rest of the cities in the county to provide for free. An exceptional selection for free download and it works with my iPod, so I paid nothing for all of the above, you just will have to listen to them before the checked out period ends (3 weeks). It is very easy!

I have been hiking 3 days a week and have had the time to listen to all of these books as well as keep up with the podcast called "Security Now" with Steve Gibson and Leo Laporte.

Here is the link to our library,
http://phoenix.lib.overdrive.com

[Medit8]

I just finished "Rogue Trader" by Nick Leeson. Incredible story and vicariously interesting. That's from a locational, not a trade execution perspective.

Anything by John Irving works for me. That man can just plain tell a story.

[donheff]

I just finished "Windy City; a Novel of Politics," by Scott Simon. It starts with the mayor of Chicago found dead with his face in a pizza - from nicotine poisoning. Need I say more?

I also read "Deamon" by Daniel Suarez. A rich, brilliant, paranoid game designer dies of cancer and leaves behind a complex set of running processes and scripts that begin killing people and taking over corporations. A fun read (the IT aspects are pretty good but you do have to suspend disbelief). A sequel is in the works.

[Rich_by_the_Bay]

Quote:

Originally Posted by donheff I just finished "Windy City; a Novel of Politics," by Scott Simon.

Is that the NPR's Scott Simon?

[canadianteddy]

I have a tendancy to read biographies/autobiographies. If you like that sort of thing the following are excellent (in my humble opinion)

The Glass Castle - Jeannette Walls

Into thin Air - Jon Krakauer

Under the Banner of Heaven - Jon Krakauer

Recent fiction read

Water for Elephants - Sara Gruen EXCELLENT

Firefly Road - It bored me to tears

[harley]

I read fiction fast, and non-fiction slowly. I'm a sci-fi/fantasy fan, and have recently been re-reading some old favs - Fritz Lieber's Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser series, Douglas Adams' Hitchhiker books, things like that. I can usually knock one of these books out in a day or so. In my attempt to read the classics I missed or can't remember well I'm reading For Whom the Bell Tolls, with Don Quixote in the on deck circle. I've been reading The Great Depression Ahead by Harry Dent. He makes Hemingway look positively upbeat.