Kmar
Truth is my Bitch
+5,695|6571|132 and Bush

FEOS wrote:

Recommend:

The Kite Runner
Great recommendation. I read it a few years ago.
Xbone Stormsurgezz
mcminty
Moderating your content for the Australian Govt.
+879|6692|Sydney, Australia

rdx-fx wrote:

Recommend.
House to House SSG David Bellavia

http://www.amazon.com/House-Soldiers-Me … amp;sr=1-1
QFE! I remember when I first read that - started sometime in the morning and finished at 4am the next day. Captivating.
ATG
Banned
+5,233|6500|Global Command
Recommend:   



The Lost Civilizations of the Stone Age


http://www.amazon.com/gp/reader/0684862 … eader-link

By bringing together evidence from archaeology, ancient history, linguistics and anthropology, the author convincingly demonstrates that the inventions, achievements and discoveries of prehistoric times have all but been edited out of popular accounts of human history. He describes how stone age explorers discovered all the world's land masses, presents strong evidence for writing before 5000BC and for mathematical, medical and astronomical science as well as tool-making and mining long before the Sumerians. Tracing the human story from the cusp of history back to the earliest known artefacts, he shows that the making of rugs, dental drilling and accountancy among others, were all known in the Neolithic. But not only that - the other "ideological wall" placed at about 40 000BC is also being shown up to be highly dubious as many anomalous cases of earlier symbolic and artistic activities are coming to light.
rdx-fx
...
+955|6562

FEOS wrote:

Recommend:

The Kite Runner and A Thousand Splendid Suns, both by Khaled Hosseini.

The writing style is immersive, taking the reader back to pre-Soviet invasion Afghanistan, through civil war and Taliban rule. Helps a westerner better understand the many cultural schisms that make up Afghan society.

In the middle of A Thousand Splendid Suns right now.
Will have to take a look at those.

It's amazing how much of the last 40 years of world history has been triggered in that backwater rock pile (Afghanistan).
Dilbert_X
The X stands for
+1,810|6076|eXtreme to the maX
1984
Everyone should read this book once
http://www.amazon.com/Nineteen-Eighty-F … amp;sr=1-2

And the Band Played On
The story of the AIDS epidemic.
http://www.amazon.com/Band-Played-Polit … amp;sr=1-1
Well written and a gripping read - surprisingly, sets out the history, the science and the politics.
Worth bearing in mind for whatever the next epidemic is.
Русский военный корабль, иди на хуй!
ghettoperson
Member
+1,943|6620

I'll just go ahead and throw my two previous reviews in here.

ghettoperson wrote:

DC Confidential by Christopher Meyer

'Blair was pretty determined to go all the way with President Bush not because he's hanging on to this relationship for dear life but because he truly believed that Saddam Hussein was an offence to the integrity of the UN.'

Christopher Meyer was Ambassador to the United States from 1997 to 2003, during which time he was an eyewitness to and participant in the events following 9/11 and the preparations for the Iraq war. Never before has there been such a riveting and candid memoir of life behind the diplomatic scenes. Meyer's is an honest account of what he saw, what he heard and how he felt.

The cast list of characters who feature here includes Margaret Thatcher, Bob Hope, the Clintons, Steven Spielberg, Condoleeza Rice, Alastair Campbell and Jack Straw. The book reveals close encounters with Tony Blair, Robin Cook and Peter Mandelson; KGB honey traps in Russia; a major row with Bill Clinton; inside stories on Number 10 and the Foreign Office; and of course life behind the scenes with Blair and George W. Bush. It was clear that the Prime Minister's office and not the Foreign Office would control relations with Washington, and Meyer shows in close up how he helped facilitate the 'special relationship'.

For anyone whose definition of a diplomat is someone sent abroad to lie for their country, Christopher Meyer's memoir is the perfect rejoinder. It will also be hailed as one of the most important political memoirs of the decade.

http://www.orionbooks.co.uk/HB-36992/dc … ntial-.htm
I first read this book two years ago, and have been meaning to reread it for a while. Well, now that I'm home from uni, I'm part way through, but it suddenly occured to me that the intellectual machine that is D&ST might be interested

Anyway, if you can't be bothered to read the PR blurb, it's the memoirs of the former British Ambassador to the United States, starting with his first appointment to Downing Street in 1994. From this position he was privy to all kinds of information, and especially high on the list at the time of his retirement, the war in Iraq. It's not all about that though, and provides a great insight into political life, as well as a personal look at all the major figures in British and American government.

Wiki on the author

ghettoperson wrote:

Making a Killing by James Ashcroft

Between coalition troops and the Iraqi security forces lies an unnamed and uncounted third column:  soldiers of fortune.  In September 2003, James Ashcroft, a former British Infantry captain who served in West Belfast and Bosnia, landed in Iraq as a 'gun for hire'.  It was the beginning of an 18-month journey into chaos.  Ashcroft provides a first-hand view of the secret world of private security where ex-soldiers employed to protect US and British interests can make up to $1,000 a day.  But he also reveals a new kind of warfare where the rules - if you can call them that - are still being written.

http://www.amazon.com/Making-Killing-Ja … 1852273119
I bought it a few days ago when I was at the airport, and it's a great insight into what Iraq is really like, and paints quite a different picture to what you hear in the media; especially with regard to all the good that occurs every day there, with both troops, contractors and Iraqi's. Ashcroft also appears quite informed in Iraqi history, so it isn't entirely an action novel, but also a lot of analysis of the problems that face the people on the ground there.

Obviously I don't expect everyone to rush out and buy it, but if you're interested in the Iraq conflict and get the opportunity to read it, I would most definitely recommend it.

Last edited by ghettoperson (2009-01-05 06:25:20)

Varegg
Support fanatic :-)
+2,206|6780|Nårvei

Recommend

Master Plan Himmlers Scholars by Heather Pringle

A book about how Heinrich Himmler recruited and attracted scholars in his hunt for the origin of the aryan race, his scientists made trips to all corners of the world to find proof that the aryan race was the basis of all other races. A deep dive into the twisted minds of the third reich, how they twisted information and experimented on prisoners (mostly Jews) to reach their scientific goals ... what strikes me about the book is that very often was the end result of their research already given and the scientists jobs was to reach the predetermined result.
Wait behind the line ..............................................................
Snake
Missing, Presumed Dead
+1,046|6536|England

Recommend

Fire from the Forest: The SAS Brigade in France, 1944 By Roger Ford

Amazon.co.uk wrote:

This is a comprehensive account of the behind-the-lines missions that supported the D-Day landings and the breakout from Normandy. The SAS mounted 36 operations behind enemy lines, sabotaging railways, calling in airstrikes and ambushing German units on their way to the battlefront. Some achieved results out of all proportion to the small numbers of SAS involved. Others, like the ill-fated 'Operation Bulbasket', led to the capture and execution of many SAS men. It is a sanguinary tale that exposes the limits as well as the potential of elite military units and the civilian resistance movements they fought alongside.

Between D-Day and October 1944 the SAS Brigade mounted some thirty-six operations behind German lines in France. This is the first comprehensive history and assessment of these missions. Some achieved exactly the sort of success intended, tying down disproportionate numbers of German forces and fanning into fierce flames the sparks of resistance kept alive by the French maquisards. Others, most notoriously 'Operation Bulbasket', were disastrous failures leading the deaths of many SAS personnel and resistance fighters. One controversial issue explored by Roger Ford is the degree to which British officers knew about Hitler's order to execute captured 'commandos'. The SAS men captured at Verrières were murdered in cold blood, a war crime for which several German served short prison sentences after the war. Should they have known the Germans would not treat them as normal prisoners of war?
My thoughts:
I recently saw a documentary on History about this, having read the book a few years ago. Ive always been fascinated by the SAS, and to read of its original formation and missions which I was unaware of, which were far from its modern day stereotype of "Counter-Terrorism", was a joy.
It goes into great detail, including linking up with the French Maqisards (sp?) and Jedburgh teams to cause sabotage and problems for the Nazi's to vital installations, including bridges, railway lines, telecommunications, convoys, etc, to delay the reinforcements that would be sent to Normandy.

Amazon Link

==================================================

Recommend

Black Hawk Down By Mark Bowden

Amazon.co.uk wrote:

In Black Hawk Down journalist Mark Bowden delivers a strikingly detailed account of the 1993 nightmare operation in Mogadishu that left 18 American soldiers dead and many more wounded. This early foreign-policy disaster for the Clinton administration led to the resignation of Secretary of Defence Les Aspin and a total troop withdrawal from Somalia. Bowden does not spend much time considering the context; instead he provides a moment-by-moment chronicle of what happened in the air and on the ground. His gritty narrative tells of how Rangers and elite Delta Force troops embarked on a mission to capture a pair of high-ranking deputies to warlord Mohamed Farrah Aidid only to find themselves surrounded in a hostile African city. Their high-tech MH-60 Black Hawk helicopters had been shot down and a number of other miscues left them trapped through the night. Bowden describes Mogadishu as a place of Mad Max--like anarchy--implying strongly that there was never any peace for the supposed peacekeepers to keep. He makes full use of the defence bureaucracy's extensive paper trail--which includes official reports, investigations and even radio transcripts--to describe the combat with great accuracy, right down to the actual dialogue. He supplements this with hundreds of his own interviews, turning Black Hawk Down into a completely authentic non-fiction novel, a lively page-turner that will make readers feel like they're standing beside the embattled troops. This will quickly be realised as a modern military classic. --John J. Miller
My thoughts:
Most, if not, all of us have seen the film, and it is a fast-paced action gem of a film. However, it is far from complete, and the truth somewhat differs from the actual events, including the location of the first crash site, survivors of the second crash site and even the soldiers in the Convoy and "Eversmanns chalk" (he was actually on a Humvee!).

This book is the best book I have ever read; it is just as fast-paced as the film, is taken from real accounts from the people who were there (including some of the D-boys and Somalis too) and is put together extremely well to form a non-fiction account of the battle.
If you liked the film, you will absolutely love this book.

Amazon Link
Brasso
member
+1,549|6601

Dilbert_X wrote:

1984
Everyone should read this book once
http://www.amazon.com/Nineteen-Eighty-F … amp;sr=1-2
Seconded.

FEOS wrote:

Recommend:

The Kite Runner and A Thousand Splendid Suns, both by Khaled Hosseini.

The writing style is immersive, taking the reader back to pre-Soviet invasion Afghanistan, through civil war and Taliban rule. Helps a westerner better understand the many cultural schisms that make up Afghan society.

In the middle of A Thousand Splendid Suns right now..
I actually recommend The Kite Runner only.  After reading The Kite Runner and being blown away I was very disappointed with A Thousand Splendid Suns.
"people in ny have a general idea of how to drive. one of the pedals goes forward the other one prevents you from dying"
AussieReaper
( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)
+5,761|6123|what

Stalingrad - Antony Beevor

Stalingrad is a narrative history of the epic battle fought in and around the city of Stalingrad during World War II, as well as the events leading up to it and those which occurred after.

The book starts with Operation Barbarossa, the German invasion of the USSR in June 1941, and the subsequent drive into the Soviet Union. Its main focus is the Battle of Stalingrad, and it details the following battles and war crimes committed by both sides. The book ends with the defeat of the Germans and the beginning of the Soviet advance on Germany. Beevor returned to the subject with Berlin: The Downfall 1945.

The book won the first Samuel Johnson Prize, the Wolfson History Prize and the Hawthornden Prize for Literature in 1999.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/f/fc/Stalingradbook.jpg

Note: The book was published in the United States under the title of Stalingrad: The Fateful Siege 1942-43

It was a great read.
https://i.imgur.com/maVpUMN.png
FEOS
Bellicose Yankee Air Pirate
+1,182|6381|'Murka

haffeysucks wrote:

Dilbert_X wrote:

1984
Everyone should read this book once
http://www.amazon.com/Nineteen-Eighty-F … amp;sr=1-2
Seconded.

FEOS wrote:

Recommend:

The Kite Runner and A Thousand Splendid Suns, both by Khaled Hosseini.

The writing style is immersive, taking the reader back to pre-Soviet invasion Afghanistan, through civil war and Taliban rule. Helps a westerner better understand the many cultural schisms that make up Afghan society.

In the middle of A Thousand Splendid Suns right now..
I actually recommend The Kite Runner only.  After reading The Kite Runner and being blown away I was very disappointed with A Thousand Splendid Suns.
I'm not...at all. It is an unbelievably good book, clearly detailing the insanity that has been Afghanistan for the past 20-odd years. Nearly finished it on the plane today.
“Everybody is a genius. But if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid.”
― Albert Einstein

Doing the popular thing is not always right. Doing the right thing is not always popular
KEN-JENNINGS
I am all that is MOD!
+2,973|6602|949

kylef wrote:

Kmarion wrote:

kylef wrote:

non-biased
Now that's a tough one.
Yeah hence the brackets. My opinion is 'fragile' as it is, a bit of benevolency never hurts though. Been looking around but nothing really seems to catch exactly what I'm after.
Meh link doesn't work.  Try Might of Nations: World Politics in Our Time by John Stoessinger.

There's a case study of the MidEast plus more.  It's revised every so often too.

Last edited by KEN-JENNINGS (2009-01-05 21:16:26)

Varegg
Support fanatic :-)
+2,206|6780|Nårvei

TheAussieReaper wrote:

Stalingrad - Antony Beevor


It was a great read.
I find Beevor rather tiresome to read, Stalingrad was okay but Paris and a couple of others was boring ... his writing skills does not impress me tbh ...
Wait behind the line ..............................................................
AussieReaper
( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)
+5,761|6123|what

Varegg wrote:

TheAussieReaper wrote:

Stalingrad - Antony Beevor


It was a great read.
I find Beevor rather tiresome to read, Stalingrad was okay but Paris and a couple of others was boring ... his writing skills does not impress me tbh ...
I didn't recommend Paris though. Stalingrad was interesting, for me at least. One of the few books that looks at both sides rather evenly.
https://i.imgur.com/maVpUMN.png
..teddy..jimmy
Member
+1,393|6620
Max Manus

An autobiography of a Norwegian resistance fighter during the German occupation of World War II. Describes in detail his sabotage methods, his training and the struggle the Norwegian "Linge Company" and other Norwegian freedom fighters experienced in severely damaging German resources primarily in Oslo. An important part of Norwegian history that outlines the hardships this country undertook when being occupied.
Pure awesome.
Vax
Member
+42|5822|Flyover country

kylef wrote:

Thanks KJ I'll took a look into that. To widen the circle a bit I guess reading both views separately wouldn't be that bad. So any single-sided recommendations?
If you are really into the history you might try Six Days of War 

Probably biased
*shrug*

but still a highly respected account
Pug
UR father's brother's nephew's former roommate
+652|6512|Texas - Bigger than France
Recommend

Winterdance
The Fine Madness of Running the Iditarod
by Gary Paulsen

Book Jacket Summary: Fueled by a passion for running dogs, Gary Paulsen entered the Iditarod - the eleven hundred and eighty mile sled-dog race across Alaska wilderness - in dangerous ignorance and with a fierce determination.  For seventeen days, he and his team of dogs endured blinding wind, snowstorms, frostbite, dogfights, moose attacks, sleeplessness, hallucinations - and the relentless push to go on.

My Summary: Guy's freaking crazy to do what he did.  Also the books is quite funny - if a dog team can pull an entire car at 25-30 mph thru a forest during the summer - what happens when it's one man on a bike hitched to the same team?

http://www.amazon.com/Winterdance-Fine- … 0156001454
apollo_fi
The Flying Kalakukko.
+94|6501|The lunar module
Recommend

In Europe: Travels Through the Twentieth Century
Geert Mak

Booklist wrote:

Sweeping in scope, brimmming with luxurious and telling detail, electric in prose style, and deeply comprehending in its understanding of the subject, this Dutch writer's magnum opus is the result of a commission he accepted from the newpaper he worked for: a record of his year-long travels throughout Europe at the end of the millennium. His charge was to see if a workable definition of Europe still had relevance—specifically, if there exists sufficient commonality among the European nations to make a definition feasible. The second layer of his writings takes the form of his simultaneous consciousness of the history of each place he visited; it came home to him during his jaunts that "all the different stages of the twentieth century are being lived, or relived, somewhere." The history of the twentieth century, he discovered, was indelibly etched into how almost all Europeans have led their lives at any point in the century. Mak moves thoroughly but nimbly through both time and location, correlating now to then in particularly dramatic episodes, resulting in a beautiful way to learn about both European history and current events.
.Sup
be nice
+2,646|6424|The Twilight Zone

TheAussieReaper wrote:

Stalingrad - Antony Beevor

Stalingrad is a narrative history of the epic battle fought in and around the city of Stalingrad during World War II, as well as the events leading up to it and those which occurred after.

The book starts with Operation Barbarossa, the German invasion of the USSR in June 1941, and the subsequent drive into the Soviet Union. Its main focus is the Battle of Stalingrad, and it details the following battles and war crimes committed by both sides. The book ends with the defeat of the Germans and the beginning of the Soviet advance on Germany. Beevor returned to the subject with Berlin: The Downfall 1945.

The book won the first Samuel Johnson Prize, the Wolfson History Prize and the Hawthornden Prize for Literature in 1999.
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/e … adbook.jpg

Note: The book was published in the United States under the title of Stalingrad: The Fateful Siege 1942-43

It was a great read.
This book is win. Heard there one from the same author called Rush to Berlin or something along those lines. Read this book. Period
https://www.shrani.si/f/3H/7h/45GTw71U/untitled-1.png
CameronPoe
Member
+2,925|6526

.Sup wrote:

TheAussieReaper wrote:

Stalingrad - Antony Beevor

Stalingrad is a narrative history of the epic battle fought in and around the city of Stalingrad during World War II, as well as the events leading up to it and those which occurred after.

The book starts with Operation Barbarossa, the German invasion of the USSR in June 1941, and the subsequent drive into the Soviet Union. Its main focus is the Battle of Stalingrad, and it details the following battles and war crimes committed by both sides. The book ends with the defeat of the Germans and the beginning of the Soviet advance on Germany. Beevor returned to the subject with Berlin: The Downfall 1945.

The book won the first Samuel Johnson Prize, the Wolfson History Prize and the Hawthornden Prize for Literature in 1999.
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/e … adbook.jpg

Note: The book was published in the United States under the title of Stalingrad: The Fateful Siege 1942-43

It was a great read.
This book is win. Heard there one from the same author called Rush to Berlin or something along those lines. Read this book. Period
The book you're talking about is 'The Fall of Berlin'. It's fucking brilliant too. Another one of his that is also win is 'The Spanish Civil War 1936-1939'.
.Sup
be nice
+2,646|6424|The Twilight Zone

CameronPoe wrote:

.Sup wrote:

TheAussieReaper wrote:

Stalingrad - Antony Beevor


http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/e … adbook.jpg

Note: The book was published in the United States under the title of Stalingrad: The Fateful Siege 1942-43

It was a great read.
This book is win. Heard there one from the same author called Rush to Berlin or something along those lines. Read this book. Period
The book you're talking about is 'The Fall of Berlin'. It's fucking brilliant too. Another one of his that is also win is 'The Spanish Civil War 1936-1939'.
Thanks for the info Cam but I have difficulties finding a SLO store that sells his books. Might order over the Internet.
https://www.shrani.si/f/3H/7h/45GTw71U/untitled-1.png
Wreckognize
Member
+294|6455
">The Human Encounter With Death

This book is about psychedelic therapy with terminally ill cancer patients.  The resulting spiritual experiences helped some of the patients and their families come to terms with death, and even relieved some of the patients physical pain when surgery and other medical methods were unsuccessful.


As a psychology major and due to my own experiences with hallucinogenics, I found this to be a fascinating book.  I definitely plan to do more research into psychedelic therapy in college and hopefully later on in my career.

Last edited by Wreckognize (2009-01-11 20:04:53)

FatherTed
xD
+3,936|6470|so randum
Recommend - Hitchhikers Guide To The Galaxy

Just amazing tbh, amazing wit throughout. RIP Douglas Adams

Don't Panic
Small hourglass island
Always raining and foggy
Use an umbrella
Flaming_Maniac
prince of insufficient light
+2,490|6677|67.222.138.85
https://i53.photobucket.com/albums/g44/Flaming_Maniac/outliers.gif

Outliers: The Story of Success

Recommend

Malcom Gladwell, someone I would consider to be a contemporary genius, has also written The Tipping Point and Blink, the likes of which I hope most of you are familiar with. In a similar style Gladwell takes on the idea of success this time, taking some common and some uncommon examples of what most would consider success and examines just what exactly made them successful. Was it innate talent that made the Beatles what they were, or did they just play an awful lot? Are the players on the Canadian junior hockey leagues really the premiere, up and coming stars, or is the country using only roughly half of their talent? These are the kinds of specific examples Gladwell brilliantly uses to show us that while there are very specific, measurable variables that cause success at the micro level with little doubt, these same principles can apply at a macro scale as well. If taken to heart, the ideas put for can and should change the way society looks at success, to make more people more successful more often.

Quite frankly, if you have not bought this book or other books by this author, you are in for a treat. His books are stimulating and thoroughly entertaining, often in the same style of Freakonomics of taking seemingly obtuse example and making a very clear case out of it. It's a fairly short read, but one that will keep you entertained from cover to cover while giving you ideas that if taken to heart could very well change your outlook on life for the better.

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/ … k_code=as1
1927
The oldest chav in the world
+2,423|6644|Cardiff, Capital of Wales
Please dont see this as a piss take, its why I rarely post in this section as Im such a joker but I am being serious about a serious subject

Dr Allen Carrs easy way to stop smoking
https://www.allencarr.co.za/Images/bookcover.jpg

It may just save your life.  3 of us read it.  We all stopped.  My Brother in law still dosent smoke, both myself and my Mum started smoking again.

Mum died Sept 2005, she had lung and liver cancer.  A very interesting read which dispells certain myths about why smoking is so hard to give up.  Its not, I just dont want to at the moment.

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