I just caught up on the last two Podcasts (grad school project was due, so everything has taken a backseat!) and when I started listening to the primary topic for the day, I just kept thinking to myself "You must mention Hot Zone, you must mention Hot Zone!" Sure enough, Ann discussed the book! Yay for Ann! This book came up in my book group under the heading "books so terrifying you stay up all night reading them". I completely agree with Ann's review of the book - it is nonfiction that reads like a novel, so gripping, and so horrifying that you, too, are likely to read it in one sitting. The first chapter will always stay with you. Ebola is a scary,scary thing kids. I encourage everyone to check this one out, and I look forward to reading Michael's pick.

I get so excited when they recommend a book I've read (yay The Hot Zone and and The Alienist. And maybe The Ruins or did I imagine that one?)

Agreed, The Hot Zone is scary. And was written 10+ years ago but they still don't know where Ebola comes from. Preson wrote another book recently about conservation called The Wild Trees that got really good reviews.

Is that the podcast that recommended The Fragment? I put that one in my to read queue.

Vanessa, The Ruins was one of the first books we ever talked about! And yes, Michael is a huge fan of FRAGMENT.

Me, I get excited when I see people talk about reading the books we talk about. that's why I love this group so much!

I am very excited to read Fragment. Michael really got me pumped for that one! There were several titles from the last episode that I want to add to my to-read list. I checked on the "podcast" bookshelf and didn't see any of the books mentioned from the last episode...do I need to just pull the titles from the blog?

Speaking of The Ruins, A Simple Plan by the same author was also a great book. Not horror but very suspenseful and more thought provoking than The Ruins.

(btw, The Ruins was so intense I've never been able to bring myself to watch the movie.)

Stephanie-
I've been lax in keeping the Group Shelf updated here. So yes, if you check out the blog and show notes, you'll see all the books listed.

Vanessa,
Our friend Noelle did a blog post called "I Saw The Ruins so You Don't Have To" - it's hysterical, check it out: http://dailytannenbaum.com/2008/04/10/i-...

I think I am the only person in this group that HATED the book and decided to watch the movie, and of course, HATED that too. I wish we still had our book group discussion thread on our site so I could share it with you. We are a sarcastic bunch, and I literally had tears in my eyes from laughter when I read postings.

I checked out the blog yesterday and added the books to my BOTNS shelf on Goodreads. That last episode was fantastic! You guys make some great recommendations and I love the format of the show.

The movie looked like pretty standard bloody but banal horror fare but I did enjoy the book. I also did love the blog link. I'm quite sure that a Ken doll with no pants is far more entertaining than the flick.

Thanks so much for your very kind comments Stephanie!!

Putting the podcast together can be a lot of work sometimes, but it's truly a labor of love, and comments like yours make it even more worthwhile!