false 0 96 88 true 5701249 read 1 true 2525125 currently-reading 7 true 2525124 to-read 34 false 2525922 science-fiction 17 false 2563223 history 16 false 2525924 ancient 5 false 2563252 fantasy 4 false 2563231 general-fiction 4 false 2563236 philosophy 4 false 2563224 biographies 3 false 2563247 historical-fiction 2 false 2627880 latin 2 false 2563220 crime-fiction 2 false 2563259 alt-history http://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/14609-introductions-and-welcomes Thomas made a comment in the Language & Grammar group:

Greetings fellow book lovers,

My name as seen above is Tom. I'll put forth a little personal information first: I have always and am currently residing in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. I have recently graduated from the University of Pittsburgh with a BA in History. I am currently searching for a decent job, so I can make some loan payments before I start applying for graduate school. I studied Latin for two years in college and have a decent understanding of the language, but I am by no means fluent.

My literary interests include sci-fi, ancient literature, and history. For those wondering my historical interests are in ancient Rome (Late Republic to the period of the five good emperors), Ottoman history (15th to 18th century) and I read the occasional book on the American Revolution.

Well that's about it. ]]> http://www.goodreads.com/group/show/2740.Language_Grammar Thomas joined the Language & Grammar and Pittsburgh Goodreaders groups. ]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/23458064 to: The Big Sleep by Raymond Chandler
bookshelves: crime-fiction
]]> http://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/21322-should-you-ban-or-explain-obscene-words Thomas made a comment in the Language & Grammar group:

This is a response to Lee's post (#11) about the origins of swearing:

I cannot completely deny this, but there were many words in Classical Latin which were looked upon as inappropriate. Those who were of the upper class (Cicero, Caesar, Sallust, Pliny and many others) would not use certain words because they were considered "profane". Cicero would occasionally include a play on words which when spoken aloud produced the a vulgar word, this was usually in private letters written to his friends and not in his published works. Some Roman playwrights and poets (Horace, Martial and others) would forgo the usual politeness and include the these "profane" words. I believe this would be very close to "swearing" in the modern sense, but I may be wrong. ]]> http://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/7891-favorite-reading-places Thomas made a comment in the Pittsburgh Goodreaders group:

I prefer the good ol'Cathedral of Learning, sitting in the Gothic style great room is a great atmosphere for reading (even with its hard wood chairs/benches and poor lighting). ]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/24585854 to: Osman's Dream: The History of the Ottoman Empire (Hardcover) by Caroline Finkel
bookshelves: history
]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/24583915 The Essential Kierkegaard (Paperback) by Søren Kierkegaard
bookshelves: to-read
]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/24583858 Venice, A Maritime Republic (Paperback) by Frederic Chapin Lane
bookshelves: to-read
]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/24583812 A Short History of Byzantium (Paperback) by John Julius Norwich
bookshelves: to-read
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