WHAT IS EVERYBODY READING NOW? Showing 2,201-2,250 of 2,886

[Glynn]

Just finished by Richard Rubin. An excellent book. here is what I said about it.

[Alisa]

Glynn that book has been on my TBR list for awhile, thanks for sharing. I will have to move it up the list!

by Richard Rubin (no photo)

[Rebecca]

I'm reading "Empire of Cotton"--amazing how a single commodity & textile industry could have such profound influence on so many countries and cultures. I highly recommend it.

by Sven Beckert (no photo)

[Bryan]

I'm reading:

by Ken Hughes

[Teri]

Hey Bryan ~ I edited the book and put the correct Author link to it and his picture. You should be able to add the author now.

by Ken Hughes

Bryan wrote: "I'm reading:

by Ken Hughes (No link: Goodreads has put down the wrong author)"

[Alisa]

Becky wrote: "I'm reading "Empire of Cotton"--amazing how a single commodity & textile industry could have such profound influence on so many countries and cultures. I highly recommend it.

by Mark Kurlansky
by Sven Beckert (no photo)

[Karen]

I just downloaded by David McCullough.

[Teri]

Karen, I am anxious to read that one. Will be interested in your feedback. I expect that it will be a great read.

Karen wrote: "I just downloaded by David McCullough."

[Ty]

Currently finishing up two books:

by Charles Kurzman

A collection of primary works from modernist Islamic thinkers with introductions by the editor.

And

by Gordon Weiss (no photo)

A book on the Sri Lankan Civil War with a focus on the last year of fighting between the government and the LTTE.

[Ty]

Becky wrote: "I'm reading "Empire of Cotton"--amazing how a single commodity & textile industry could have such profound influence on so many countries and cultures. I highly recommend it.
"

Thanks for the suggestion Becky! I love economic histories and will be adding this to my wish list. :)

[Ty]

About a fifth of the way through:

by Hillary Rodham Clinton

I worked briefly under Secretary Clinton while she was Secretary of State and so I was pretty interested in reading her biography of her time in that position. I am a little hesitant though concerning the text as there hasn't been much time between her time in office and the publishing of the book which prevents one from being able to comment deeply and straight forwardly on ongoing issues. I am further a little skeptical given her future political aspirations which are naturally going to impact the tone and direction of anything published. We'll see how the book plays out.

Also just started:

by Robert H. Bates (no photo)

It is a short text but came recommended by Paul Collier ( Paul Collier) who is one of my favorite authors.

[Karen]

Teri wrote: "Karen, I am anxious to read that one. Will be interested in your feedback. I expect that it will be a great read.

Karen wrote: "I just downloaded by[auth..."

I've read the first three chapters and it is good.

[John]

Karen wrote: "Teri wrote: "Karen, I am anxious to read that one. Will be interested in your feedback. I expect that it will be a great read.

Karen wrote: "I just downloaded [bookcover:The Wright Brothers|2260..."

I just picked it up yesterday- can't wait to read it myself.

[Bryan]

Interesting Ty, can you say what capacity at State? I have thumbed through my copy of the book, but have not read it. Let us know.

by Hillary Rodham Clinton

[Jeffrey]

I've been reading a lot of academic books as I am finishing my M.A. in History and am 1/3 of the way through my M.B.A. (Yes, two graduate degrees simultaneously, which is why I'm rarely here anymore.) However, since this is my week-long break in my coursework, I have a few days to read something "recreationally."So I have picked

by

I'm looking forward to digging into this one. Looks interesting.

[Shreyas]

I'm currently reading De Gaulle. It's non-fiction and quite fascinating if you're a lot into the 1st half of the 20th century.

[Jill H.]

Don't forget you book citations, Shreyas. I don't know if my example below is the book you are reading since there are several books with the same title.

Like you, I find the life of DeGaulle extremely interesting.....he was the face of Free France during WWII but was also a very difficult man.

by Julian T. Jackson (no photo)

[Bryan]

Great, Shreyas, fascinating.

Here is the proper citation:

(no image) De Gaulle by Aidan Crawley (no photo)

[John-Paul]

I'm finishing up a harrowing, fascinating true-life look at 19th century whaling (and a story that was the idea for Moby Dick as well as a movie coming out later this year):

by Nathaniel Philbrick

Ah, thank you Jill, I apologize...

by Herman Melville

[Jill H.]

Don't forget that when you mention a book you must also put a citation. It's easy to forget sometimes.

by Herman Melville

[Ty]

Bryan wrote: "Interesting Ty, can you say what capacity at State? I have thumbed through my copy of the book, but have not read it. Let us know.


Nothing Impressive. I finished up my Graduate degree in International Affairs there while working in the Bureau of African Affairs, Office of Economic Policy Staff. It was a wonderful experience and my coworkers were some of the hardest working individuals whom I have ever met.

Regarding the book though, I am half way through it and I am pretty disappointed in it. My initial concerns seem to have been justified. I loved serving under Secretary Clinton, and I have a lot of respect for her, but this book reads more like a campaign ad than anything else.

The book was published too soon after her tenure to be as insightful as I would have liked it to be. There was little time for her to see her work play out over a longer period and reflect on it thusly. Since a lot of the political processes that she talks about are still ongoing I also felt like this hindered her ability to talk about them honestly and bluntly without couching them in political language.

I also found moments in her book where I felt like she was inserting one liners and sentiment that she knew would be popular lines for her audience when it came to her presidential run. This sense of showmanship and self promotion within the writing made me a little cynical about the rest of the work. I don't know at any given point if she is expressing thoughts that come from deep personal reflection and an insider look at what she did, or if she is expressing thoughts that she thinks will simply resonate with voters.

Even listening to her overview of Africa, the area that I am most familiar with her work I couldn't muster up too much interest. It was more story telling than analysis and I am more partial to the later. She didn't really get into policy details except for a couple of major political events but somehow, despite the lack of detail and analysis, she still managed to write a hefty sized book.

The book would be ok I think for someone who doesn't normally focus on International Affairs. It is a decent general overview of her tenure. I'll keep reading, but I don't think I will get much out of the second half of the book either (who knows though!)

[Bryan]

Nice summary, Ty, thank you. It sounds like history and the book would be better served if she waited to write the book. She might have some political reasons to get it out sooner than later...get things on the record, that sort of thing.

My sister in law served in Rwanda in the Peace Corps and works in public health regarding African countries.

[Diane]

This is actually a re-read for me since I plan to write a review of it later:

by Richard M. Wunderli (no photo)

[Benjamin]

Ive just started The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich: A History of Nazi Germany by William L. Shirer.

[Ty]

I just finished by Robert H. Bates (no photo)

and

by Peter Baxter (no photo)

And am starting:

by Jimmy Carter

And

by Michael Willis (no photo)

I am about a third of the way through President Carter's book and it is a pretty decent leisurely read.

I just started Politics and Power in the Maghreb today so I can't comment much on it yet, but I am very excited to read through it given the quality of its introduction and the topics that it covers.

[Jill H.]

Benjamin.....don't forget your book citations. It is sometime easy to forget. The book you mentioned should look like this:

by William L. Shirer

[Jill H.]

Ty.....Your citations are spot on but for easier reading, please put all book citations at the bottom of the post. Thanks so much.

[Bryan]

I'm swinging around and picking this great and important book back up where I left off:

by Douglas A. Blackmon

[Ty]

I just started a short read on Mauritania's north/ south divide which was particularly pungent during the 80s and early 90s. I am about a third of the way through so far and it i nice to get some more information on a country that isn't often given much attention.

by Janet Fleischman (no photo).

[Roberto]

Dollarocracy. Dollarocracy: How the Money and Media Election Complex is Destroying America
page 78

[Jill H.]

Don't forget you book citations, Roberto....it is sometimes easy to forget. The book you mentioned should look like this:

by John Nichols(no photo)

[Dimitri]

by Dennis E. Showalter [no photo]

[Bryan]

Looks like a good one Dimitri.

[Jill H.]

I cannot believe I haven't read this book before since WWI is one of my favorite historical eras. So I have started it and so far, so good.....but what would you expect from John Keegan!

by John Keegan

[Diane]

I've just started what looks to be a fascinating read about the Reconstruction Era in Louisiana. It's not that long a read either (243 pages, not counting the bibliography and index):

by Michael A. Ross

[Bryan]

Looks great, Diane. Let us know how you like it.

[Karen]

I've been reading by Erich Maria Remarque. To be honest after reading All Quiet on the Western Front years ago (and liking it), I hadn't thought to look for anything else by him. This book takes place in the summer of 1939, right before the start of WWII.

by Erich Maria Remarque

[Michael]

I am nearly finished with Destiny of the Republic: A Tale of Madness, Medicine and the Murder of a President by Candice Millard. This well-written fascinating book explores the assassination of President James Garfield. I knew little about Garfield; what a tragedy - he held such promise! Guiteau, the assassin, was a delusional loner/loser, similar to Lee Harvey Oswald. Ultimately, physician resistance to Lister's new "germ theory" finished off the President, who was not mortally wounded. Highly recommended!

[Bryan]

Great Michael, this book is in my library to be read.

Don't forget the proper citation:

by Candice Millard

[Michael]

Bryan wrote: "Great Michael, this book is in my library to be read.

Don't forget the proper citation:

by ..."
It's not forgetting; it's that I couldn't figure out how to do it! I used the "add book/author" link above the comment box, but that didn't work.

[Fred]

Karen wrote: "I've been reading by Erich Maria Remarque. To be honest after reading All Quiet on the Western Front year..."

I finished this book in February. He also wrote The Road Back and several others. I mention Der Weg zurück, because who survived that war had psychological problems to deal with. Perhaps, it is what we now refer to as PTSD. See The American Sniper for an extreme example. A much better story of the way back is To Serve Them All My Days. I'm breaking the rules by not adding the book links. You could help me by showing me how to add these easily as I type the response.
Thanks,
Fred

[Bryan]

Michael, sorry you were having troubles, just keeping trying when you have trouble, or let one of moderators know about a potential issue. Thanks.

[Teri]

Fred, see msg 2 in the following thread and it will step you through the process of adding the book/author info in the proper citation format:

https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

Let us know if that helps or if we can answer any further questions.

Fred wrote: "Karen wrote: "I've been reading by Erich Maria Remarque. To be honest after reading All Quiet on the West..."

[Fred]

How can I do this when I don't know what a "thread" is?

Can you translate to English?

[Michael]

Fred wrote: "How can I do this when I don't know what a "thread" is?

Can you translate to English?"

Hi Fred this a thread each topic listed has it's own thread.

So in this instance Teri is referring to the second message at the beginning of this topic or thread.

I hope this has clarified for you what a thread is.

[Ty]

Just started the below book. I've had it for quite some time, ever since I saw Haqqani interviewed on Fareed Zakaria's GPS show and am finally getting around to diving into it.

by Husain Haqqani (no photo)

[Donna]

I picked this up from the library the other day - a very good read so far and a bit of an anecdote to all of the political cynicism.

by David Axelrod (no photo)

[Diane]

I enjoyed my last book, but decided for a change of pace and period:

by Neal Bascomb (no photo)

[Jill H.]

@Diane.....I read that book a couple of years ago and thoroughly enjoyed it. Good choice.

[Alisa]

Dipping into fiction at the moment, just started this and it seems very good so far. Anyone else read this or other works by the author?
by Sara Gruen

Can't put my finger on it, but something about the writing style and story reminds me of John Irving's style.
John Irving