Most liked posts in thread: Books worth reading thread

I loved the Killer Angels. If you really want a complete understanding of Gettysburg, try this:

http://www.amazon.com/Gettysburg-Invasion-Allen-C-Guelzo-ebook/dp/B00A9ET69I/ref=dp_kinw_strp_1

Heavily researched, it's the first book on Gettysburg I've read that was filled with page after page of new persepctives. I love "Killer Angels" (although technically it's historical fiction), but "The Last Invasion" puts everything into perspective in a way no other book I've read on Gettysburg has ever done. Joshua Chamberlain, although still a hero in my eyes, maybe wasn't as much of a hero as he's been given credit for--this book makes it clear who did what, and when.

Despite the amount of information given, it's well written, with many interesting side stories, almost reads like a novel.

 

You have to have a Kindle to access it. It's the only reason I bought one...You can get the base kindle without light, for 69 bucks, but it often goes on sale for 49 bucks. I use the kindle app on my ipad all the time and love it, but unfortunately the only way you can access the lending library is through a kindle device (any kindle device--kindle fire, paperwhite, or base kindle).

I wish they'd relax that so I could use my Mini ipad with the kindle app to read it, which is what I use for most books, but so far Amazon hasn't budged on it.

For me, I use Prime so much anyway, the book thing is a nice bonus, and it was worth picking up the cheapest kindle for--it's what I take with me to the pool if the kids are going swimming, or any place where I really don't want to take my Mini Ipad.

You get one free book per month from the Lending Library, and the library is limited, but usually I can find a great book once a month, and that pays for my prime right there (I read a fair amount).

 

Alright, since this thread may actually go somewhere...I read one "deep" book and one guilty pleasure book at a time, and go through a fair amount of both (Beast is my guilty pleasure book at the moment, "Wilson" my deep book, I'll review it when I'm finished, as it's very,very good. And very, very long).

I just finished a book "Console Wars", about the Sega/Nintendo wars; a light read, but very, very good, also humerous, especially if you grew up with those console platforms. It starts with Nintendo, goes through the growth of Sega, then ends with Sony coming on the scene.

Last months Prime book for me was "The Big Short--The Doomsday Machine", which was
outstanding. Written by Micheal Lewis (The Blind Side), it goes through the Wall Street crash of 2007-2008, and into the lending market, CDO's, etc. and how they all lead to the crash. It takes a very complex (for me) topic and makes it easy to understand--well-written, often very funny and highly entertaining. It's still in the Prime Lending Library.

For guilty pleasure books, I recently went on a "Deadliest Catch" binge (my wife and one of my kids are addicted, sad but true); The "Time Bandit" book is worth reading, the Phil Harris book isn't, Sig Hansen's book is very good, Jake Anderson's book is very good, and, of the entire bunch, Scott Campbell's book (Giving the finger) is by far the best. They're all quick reads, and fun if you're a fan of the show.

Once I finish "Beast", my next guilty pleasure book will be "Black Noon", I'm on kind of an Indy 500 kick at the moment.

 

Ben Collins (the Stig) book, "the Man in the White Suit", is only $1.99 today, so I finally bought it...that doesn't require Prime, and you can read it on any tablet with the free kindle app.

 

That one makes my guilty pleasure wish list, thanks!

 

Finished "Beast" a couple of days ago, I couldn't put it down...

It's as good or better than what I originally thought. It's very well written, and very well organized (no spoilers, there's some really good stuff in there and I don't want to ruin it for anyone). It's roughly organized like this: It starts with a bit of background, then explains on the how/why the pushrod rules where changed, including the politics, the politics of Penske building the engine, including how Ilmor and Mercedes got involved, the actual development of the engine itself on the bench (with plenty of diagrams), track testing and refining the engine with the test drivers, Indy qualifying, the race itself (tons here--learned what was really going on with the drivers, much of what happened with both Unser's and Fittapaldi's drive was unkown to me, and the aftermath of what happened with the pushrod--lot's of politics there, and how it all turly played out is much more interesting than how it's perceived.

But there was so much more going on--it delves into the very beginning of the CART/IRL split which ruined what was at the time a healthy, economically strong series; Rahal switching to Honda engines (and back), USAC's role in the series, etc. There is some great tidbits in this book that I'm avoiding writing about with great difficulty so as not to spoil it.

If you are fan of the Indy 500, or if you were a fan back before the CART/IRL split, this is a must read IMHO--although I got it free on prime, it's well worth buying if you don't have access to prime.

 

Finished the Ben Collins book last week, a little disappointing--still a good read for a Top Gear fan, but there could have been a bit more Top Gear, and a lot less army training. The beginning was very good though--about his coming up through F3 and F2 -- that was a pleasant surprise.

Currently still reading "Wilson", and have gotten a good ways into "Black Noon". "Black Noon" is every bit as good as "The Beast,;" reading these two almost back to back is a very nice treat. Strongly recommend both.