Books: What are you reading?

That looks interesting Travis, might have to pick up a copy.

I've read half of it... very good so far.

Due my visual imparment I can't enjoyably read anymore. Enter a big-screen TV.

I just purchased the Ken Burns series "The Civil War" on DVD. First released in 1990 on VHS the digitalized version is far superior for a serious student of the American Civil War. (That would be me!) It is divided into segments which may easily be retrieved at viewer discression though a "menu page". Six DVD's are in the set and comprise over eleven hours of total run-time. It's best viewed in segments because an awfully lot of information is presented

Ken Burns is photo-documentarian without equal blending narrative, pictures, first-person accounts and Civil War era music. Further he's done several other features like "Our National Parks: America's Best Idea", "Prohibition, "The Dust Bowl" and "Baseball" to name only a few.

SuperDave

Sorry to hear you can't enjoy reading anymore Dave, have you tried reading on a Kindle or iPad where you can make the font pretty much as large as you like?
You can also adjust the screen brightness to suit you preference.

SuperDave wrote:

I just purchased the Ken Burns series "The Civil War" on DVD. First released in 1990 on VHS the digitalized version is far superior for a serious student of the American Civil War.
SuperDave

When it first was aired, there was a group of us who would meet and watch the weekly segment. One of the women who attended was in the History Dept. at the University and was a Civil Was specialist --- she would fill in gaps with detailed history and often had interesting anecdotes about the somewhat "colorful" characters in the war.

I thought it was one of Burn's best works --- I'm sure you'll enjoy reviewing it again.

My wife is a big fan of "North and South". She is suppose to be in it somewhere as an extra.

PBS did the DVD uprade (from VHS) in 2011 to commemorate the 150th Anniversary of the Civil War. It lasted four very long years.

It has been rightly said that if you TRUELY wish to understand the United States one should understand how the Civil War began and and how the focus shifted to emancipation of slave with Emancipation Proclaimation in 1863 which was actually more a presidential proclaimation than effective emancipation. Notheless it did change the nature of the ACW.

Over 600,000 Americas lost their lives most from disease rather than combat. It was an age in which medical technology was in it's infancy. If a soldier was wounded in the leg or arm doctors amputated it often without anesthetics; cloriform and morphine were often not available particularlly for Confederates who were lacking in supplies, including food, generally. The CSA was so short of shoes, for example, they made them to fit both but not "lefts" and "rights". They were called "brogans".

More American lives were lost during the ACW than in all the other wars the US has fought COMBINED. (fact)

SD

RE-Reading (for the umpteenth time)..."I See by My Outfit" by Peter S. Beagle. Two guys ride their Heinkel Scooters from New York to California on 1960 America's pre-interstate highways and backroads. First read it in high school in 1970 or so, and was fascinated by thought of such small vehicles going so far.







A few summers ago, I tried to retrace a portion of their journey with my Night Train. Only small sections of those roads still exist close to me...usually loops from the main drag to access small towns...though a large chunk of the original road to Kansas City still serves as an outter road for I-70.

http://www.peterbeagle.com/books/outfit/

re: Burns Civil War DVD

It is with saddnest that I report Shelby Foote, the historian featured in much of the Burns presentation, passed away in 2005 at a age 88.

Shelby was always a favorite of mine.

SD (Yankee)

WingingIt74 wrote:Not currently reading but... it was the last book I was reading. I need to find it and start reading it again.


https://www.sportys.com/PilotShop/product/16731

We've just received word that, due to the impending sequester, our military flight demonstration teams shall be forced to make some adjustments to their budgets...

I used to stay buried in a novel at all times. Since I've been reading and writing on forums my reading of books has dropped off, but I've digested countless books of differing genre. The last book I really enjoyed was Pushing Ice by Alastair Reynolds. It begins as a near future extrapolation set in the outer solar system of an expedition to harvest comets. They end up on an epic journey that lasts about 3 million years in into the far reaches of our galaxy. I've also read all of Reynolds' Revelation Space novels set in an ever expanding human presence in our galaxy. Another SF quadrilogy(is that a word?) that I really enjoyed began with a book called Hyperion by Dan Simmons.

I've been planning to read "Century Rain" by the same author. I've also read many books by Tom Clancy, Ken Follet, Asimov, Vonnegut, Steven Hunter, Steven Coonts(Flight of the Intruder/Jake Grafton),Tom Wolfe, Douglas Adams, Bova, Barnes, Aurthur C. Clarke, Kellerman, Grisham, Ludlam, Baldacci, Steven Baxter ....and on and on.

Maybe I'll hit the library this weekend and see if I can find Century Rain.

Dave I moved your post to a different topic...
https://www.coxengineforum.com/t4570-sequester-what-does-that-mean-to-you#60303

Another excellent read is "Cold Zero: Inside the FBI Hostage Rescue Team" by Christpher Whitcomb. The author has a somewhat "Chick Yeageresque" view of himself, but like the General, has the tracks to justify it.

His insights of the Ruby Ridge and Waco incidents provide a provide a differing prospective from that of the bought-and-paid-for media's accounts...



http://www.amazon.com/Cold-Zero-Inside-Hostage-Rescue/dp/0446611824/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top

Just finished this one. Being non-fiction made it plenty heavy.
Excellent read, but tragic as all get out.
Bob

http://www.amazon.com/Bandit-Queen-India-Amazing-International/dp/1592286410/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1363994323&sr=1-1&keywords=bandit+queen+of+india