Anyone read any good books lately? No Country for Old Men.
 

Anyone read a book that you would like to see others reading? I just finished reading No Country for Old Men by Cormac McCarthy. http://www.metacritic.com/books/auth...untryforoldmen

The title is really ironic for the Villages :joke:.

I want to see the movie No Country for Old Men http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0477348/ too but seeing the movie first and then reading the book often spoils the book; whereas, I rarely find that reading the book first, spoils then going to see the film.

Re: Anyone read any good books lately? No Country for Old Men.
 

I just finished "the Whistling Season" by Ivan Doig. It takes place in the early 1900's in Montana, and is a story told through the eyes of a young boy. It explores the different kinds of education we obtain in life, and its really a great story, hard to put down.

Re: Anyone read any good books lately? No Country for Old Men.
 

This may not appeal to everyone, but I am finding it fascinating. "The Reagan Diaries" It is like having the ability to read a persons mind.

Re: Anyone read any good books lately? No Country for Old Men.
 

Ludlum's The Ambler Alert

Fast pace suspence keeps you wanting to turn the pages

Re: Anyone read any good books lately? No Country for Old Men.
 

Also, The Reagan Diaries. I love diaries anyway and this was fascinating. A real look into the mind of a man some think of as a great man, and others as a disaster.. Regardless, it was an unusual insight into the man and his administration.

Re: Anyone read any good books lately? No Country for Old Men.
 

Looking for a good read about Ronald Reagan, you may wish to consider:

God and Ronald Reagan: A Spiritual Life By Paul Kengor

Some interesting insights about the man and how his actions were shaped by his faith.

Re: Anyone read any good books lately? No Country for Old Men.
 

I am half way through "The Reagan Diaries" It is fascinating, easy to read and a real insight into the man, his leadership qualities and vulnerability. It has changed my understanding of daily presidential duties. Whether you loved or hated the man , the entries are fascinating and sparingly edited.

Re: Anyone read any good books lately? No Country for Old Men.
 

Anything by W.E.B. Griffin to include his new "Presidential Agent" series. My spouse hates it when I get a new one (or reread an older one), as I tend to ignore everyone/thing until the book is consumed.

Re: Anyone read any good books lately? No Country for Old Men.
 

Been reading parts of The War. Hard to read. Trying to read Chapters of this while also watching the DVDs of the same name.

Also reading Telegraph Days by Larry McMurtry. Fun book.

Re: Anyone read any good books lately? No Country for Old Men.
 

Golfing With God; Roland Merullo. Youth, age, theology, and golf. The student is really the teacher. A romp.

Time and Again; Jack Finney. The extensive descriptions some complain about support the illusion Finney creates. A quixotic time travel novel from the author of The Body Snatchers.

Re: Anyone read any good books lately? No Country for Old Men.
 

Is that a new one? :dontknow:

Re: Anyone read any good books lately? No Country for Old Men.
 

Congrats, Oshunluva on reaching the Veteran Member level. :clap2:

Re: Anyone read any good books lately? No Country for Old Men.
 

I am a voracious reader and complete at a minimum a book a week, sometimes two or three. I usually pick an author and then if I like them, read everything they wrote. Is there a book exchange club here? I got boxes and boxes I would like to trade. My favorite authors are Ken Follett, Wilbur Smith, James Clavell, James Patterson, Lawrence Sanders, Phillip Mongolian, Steve Martini, Nelson Demille, Grisham, Cleve Cussler, and many others. I also like Tolkien, King, and many others. Big savings opportunity for all us avid readers.

Re: Anyone read any good books lately? No Country for Old Men.
 

Thank you for starting this subject! I've read everything by Jeffery Deaver (The Bone Collector). He's brilliant & defines the category of "thriller". On the other hand, I've read everything by Maeve Binchy & Mitch Albom . NOW, I'm reading, "Jude The Obscure", by Thomas Hardy. I also love Dickens. I was enthralled by "The Kite Runner" by Khaled Hosseini, & I plan to read his, "A Thousand Splendid Suns". Ken Follett's new one, "World Without End" is on my "must read" list. His "The Eye of the Needle" scared the bejeebers out of me in print, AND on film. I, too, tend to read a couple of books at the same time.

I hope that more people will contribute to this forum on this subject. I think we have a lot of readers here in The Villages, & some of my most enjoyable reading experiences have come from references.

Re: Anyone read any good books lately? No Country for Old Men.
 

I'd love to trade with you. Unfortunately, we'd have a problem -- we'd be trying to get rid of the same books. I'm surprised, though, that Jonathan Kellerman and Jeffrey Deaver aren't on your list. Their murders are as interesting (and gory) as Patterson's.

Presently reading Michael Crichton's Next, Robin Cook's new one and Grisham's The Innocent Man. All easy reads and just what I'm in the mood for right now -- no concentration needed.

Re: Anyone read any good books lately? No Country for Old Men.
 

I never paid any attention to the number of posts anyone made until someone brought it up recently.

Re: Anyone read any good books lately? No Country for Old Men.
 

While seeing the movie August Rush at the Rialto this afternoon, I noticed that they had out a sheet of paper telling moviegoers that No Country for Old Men will be opening at the Rialto on December 21, 2007. That's great. Now I will not have to go to Orlando, Ocala or perhaps even Tampa to see it. :bigthumbsup:

Re: Anyone read any good books lately? No Country for Old Men.
 

I love to read and while I was working, I belonged to several book clubs. Trying to give away or "sell" about 20 years of books is not an easy task. Now that I am retired, I found the library. My favorites for this year are The Alchemist, Pillars of the Earth (an old one by Ken Follett) and Kite Runner. Hopefully, TV library will have a copy of World without End.

The grocery stores here in NH have just begun to recycle books ... used paperbacks for $1 and hardbacks for $2. Anything like that in TV?

Re: Anyone read any good books lately? No Country for Old Men.
 

bump

Re: Anyone read any good books lately? No Country for Old Men.
 

I'm reading The New Earth, it's not for everyone, but completely fascinating. ;)

Re: Anyone read any good books lately? No Country for Old Men.
 

I just bought it but I have not started it. The writer has been around for quite awhile I think. Is the book about the mind/body connection? (It's right here beside me. I guess I should just read it.)

Are you a part of the class that Oprah was talking about having?

I just started The Happy Bottom Riding Club: The Life and Times of Pancho Barnes by Lauren Kessler. Pancho Barnes was a barnstormer, a racer, and a stunt pilot. She flew the fastest civilian airplane in the world. She hung out with Howard Hughes and Chuck Yeager, along with lots of other flyboy buddies. She ran the wild and rowdy desert bar and grill known as "The Happy Bottom Riding Club" which was featured in The Right Stuff. I am not very far into the book, but it has completely grabbed me.

Re: Anyone read any good books lately? No Country for Old Men.
 

Hi Boomer, yes I was part of Oprah's class, but too many people on and got cut off half way through. However, she did issue an apology and posted a download.

Re: Anyone read any good books lately? No Country for Old Men.
 

There are a few used book stores in the area (is that a used store that sells books or a store that sells used books?) I'm not wild about the one next to Spanish Springs but the one further south on 27/441 across from Water Oaks is pretty good. Like you, I find a new author I like, I'll go back and try to read their entire catalogue in sequence. I've found some jewels at used book stores and while in the DC area, at dead people sales. Found Anne George that way and thought her hilarious -- twas a pity she died. I'm a big "comfortable mystery" fan ranging from Sayers and Christie to Anne Perry, MC Beaton, Evanovich, and Jack Higgins. Also love the early guys like Gardner, Hammett, and derr Biggers. I've likely got about 500-600 paperbacks, some read, some not yet gotten to. I cannot pass a used book store. I'd love to own one on one of the squares, but who could afford the rent -- maybe after the lottery. Oh, I started Dust by Martha Grimes last night. Looks typically good.

If you passed a school that said Dale Earnhardt Junior High School, would it be a Junior High named for Dale or a High School named for Junior?

Re: Anyone read any good books lately? No Country for Old Men.
 

:read: My latest reads reflect my poli sci degrees (Indiana & Ball State universities) as well as a career of teaching world history. I hope that it's not too academic.

My favorite history book of the year is God & Gold by Walter Russell Mead. The author does a wonderfully entertaining job of tying together the development of the British Empire, the United States, and globalization. (I really enjoy his use of Alice In Wonderland analogies.) Mead stresses the continuities of Anglo-American history and explains why the Brits and the Americans have dominated much of world history for the last 300 years. His big-picture or global point of view explains both the strengths and weaknesses of America's position in the modern world as well as any writer I have followed. He counters some of the arguments made by one of my other favorite historians, Niall Ferguson. I would love to hear the two of them debate!

I also have enjoyed America's Three Regimes by Morton Keller. It's a new perspective that divides the United States' political history into three time periods instead of the traditional method that focuses on short periods such as decades. He identifies the Deferential-Republican regime of the colonial and early 19th Century followed by the Party-Democratic regime from the 1820's to the 1930's. He calls the current political system a Populist-Bureaucratic regime. I was impressed by his research and the way that he constructed his argument. This books makes it a lot easier to understand how the American political system evolved and how it operates today.

I'm currently reading The Cold War by John Lewis Gaddis. So far, it's been an interesting analysis of events that all of us Baby Boomers know from our own experiences. The author's historical perspective does not always match that viewpoint that we or even American leaders had during the Cold War. However, newly released Soviet and American sources provide some surprising information that only a few insiders knew at the time. I gained a new understanding of several Cold War events after reading his analysis of the ways that the weaker non-aligned countries as well as weaker Soviet and American allies manipulated the two super powers. He also explains the conflict between America's democratic ideals and the quest for national security in a way that explains past events and relates to current events. If I wasn't retiring, this book would become part of my Advanced Placement World History Class.

Are the any other history buffs out there?

Re: Anyone read any good books lately? No Country for Old Men.
 

Just finished World Without End. Just as good as Pillars of he Earth.*****Five Stars for both! First time reading Ken Follett, guess I am going to have read some more of his stuff.

A friend just reread Grapes of Wrath and is urging me to do the same. I have always said I'd like to revisit some of "required" reading I experienced in high school and college. Hoping maybe to enjoy them more this time.

Re: Anyone read any good books lately? No Country for Old Men.
 

Beady,

Your comment about high school reading just gave me a flashback.

When I was a senior in high school, a very long time ago, the librarian came into our class to survey us about our favorite books. When I told her that mine were Forever Amber and East of Eden, she looked at me over the top of her librarian glasses and said, "My deah, you certainly like spicy literature, don't you."

The snow is flying here today, so I think I will finish up on the Pancho Barnes bio I mentioned above, and then I will search our shelves for an oldie but goodie.

Thanks.

Re: Anyone read any good books lately? No Country for Old Men.
 

I've got a lot of Cliff Notes, if you need them.

Re: Anyone read any good books lately? No Country for Old Men.
 

Its not a new book but, "A Land Remembered" by Patrick D. Smith is a great read especially if you are a Villager. It is an historical novel that tells the story of three generations of Floridians starting in the mid-1800's. Great character development and lots of action right here in Central Florida. You can relate to much of the geographic descriptions of Old Florida because vestiges of it still surround us. It hard to put down when you start it.

Yes, I have Reagan Diaries. Got a copy at the Reagan Library in Simi Valley. What a great place that is to visit.

I also was fascinated by the Diaries. What a guy Reagan was. Wish we had another.

The Mascot by Mark Kurzem
Deadheat by Joel C. Rosenberg
Protect and Defend by Vince Flynn

There are all great reads. The Mascot is a true story.

I'm 3 chapters into Leisureville. I decided to read it because i was having an ,,,"I miss my buddies up North" moment. I must honestly say, if I was wondering about TV and read the first 3 chapters, I'd buy a home here in a flash.

New Book
 

Has any one read "Going into Iraq, was it warth it?" by Peter Sheldon?
I heard it was a good read.

I guess it was "Warth" it for someone...if you are looking at the world through rose colored glasses.

Sam are you making fun of my spelling? I meant "was it worth it". My bad. I'm sorry...Johnny

I read three to five books a month.

I am working my way through the Robert B Parker series and have found his Spencer, Jesse Stone and his western series to be very good.

I also am working my way through James Patterson. He has several series - Alex Cross, the Women's Murder Club (finished the last novel) and his other books which are good reading.

I am also reading Brad Thor. Navy Seal turned Special agent for the President. All terrorist related. Good reading but start with the first novel as they all refer back to prior books.

When I get time I also read the Mary Higgins Clark books. I read all of the Carol Higgins Clark books. I am also working my way through the Joy Fielding books.

John Kellerman, Jack Higgins and Stephen King are also favorite writers