Anybody read a good book lately?

[Geowhizzer]

Just finished Flags Of Our Fathers.  Pretty good historical narrative.  It gives a good, if sometimes gory, look at the Battle of Iwo Jima, and perhaps a glimpse into the Cult of the Media.

[Diomedes]

"if somewhat gory"

how could any account of that battle be less than gory?

[Geowhizzer]

"if somewhat gory"

how could any account of that battle be less than gory?

Let's just say less sanitized than other accounts I've read.  More details than I've seen in other works.

[Drunkmasterflex]

"if somewhat gory"

how could any account of that battle be less than gory?

because the battle is only a small part of the book, it is more about the boys that raised the flag and how they were used by the media.

[phattymatty]

so i'm about halfway through ESPN: The Uncensored History and I can't put it down.  it's really interesting to read about all of the behind the scenes stuff of a network i basically grew up on.  i can't ever remember not watching sportscenter.  anyway, it goes deep into the sexual harrassment problem that has plagued them basically since the begining.  mike tirico surprisingly was one of the biggest culprits back then.  it tells of all the drugs and gambling going through the office.  even tells of gary miller shaving his ass in front of everyone at a party once.

anyway, there is a lot more actual history (people involved in starting and growing the network) than there is "party stories" but it's a great read for anyone who loves sports and non-fiction.

[Rome]

The Cormac McCarthy interview on Oprah was sandwiched between a discussion with Michael Moore & a full-on salad tossing of Bono by Oprah.

I did learn the impetus behind "The Road" though.  Mr. McCarthy was staying in El Paso with his young son and one night he began staring out the window of his hotel room.  He began imagining what the town would look like engulfed in flames because of a nuclear attack.  He said he wrote a couple of pages and then put it aside.  A few months later he woke up on vacation in Ireland with the realization that the story he was contemplating was, in fact, worthy of an entire book.

Other than that tidbit of information we got little more than the standard witless questions from the fat retard billionaire.  A lot of stuff about McCarthy being poor, divorced three times, etc.  Yawn.

[rjs246]

I read The Children of Men by PD James last week. Good stuff. The movie was changed significantly and for obvious 'political statement' reasons, but a very good book.

[rjs246]

I bought The Alphabet of Manliness by Maddox and have been skimming through it. Some of it is legitimately hilarious. Some of it is stupid beyond comprehension. Similar to his site. When he's on, though, he farging cracks me up.

[SD_Eagle5]

Just started reading 'I hope they serve beer in Hell' by Tucker Max. So far, so good.

[rjs246]

Just started reading 'I hope they serve beer in Hell' by Tucker Max. So far, so good.

From the skimming I did through that book, there wasn't one story that he doesn't have published on his web site.

[SD_Eagle5]

Just started reading 'I hope they serve beer in Hell' by Tucker Max. So far, so good.

From the skimming I did through that book, there wasn't one story that he doesn't have published on his web site.

You're right, I was just on the website and there are some differences but most of the funny shtein in the book is on the website. I borrowed it.

[PoopyfaceMcGee]

He's slightly amusing, I guess.  I've read a few of his stories.  "Tucker Tries Anal" is hilarious.

[MadMarchHare]

On rjs' advice, I read that on my lunch break at work.  I had to leave I was laughing so hard.

[Yeti]

I tried reading "Paradise Lost" by John Milton.

I don't think I am smart enough.  Got half way through and called it quits.  Good story about how Satan gets the boot from heaven and then tries to scheme his way back in.  Problem is it is in poetry form from the 1600s.
I wish I could find the same story in a normal format.

[PoopyfaceMcGee]

Now...what can we say of John Milton's "Paradise Lost"?  Well, it's a very long poem, it was written a long time ago, and I'm sure a lot of you have difficulty understanding exactly what Milton was trying to say.  Certainly we know that he was trying to describe the struggle between good and evil, right?  Okay.  The most intriguing character, as we all know from our reading, was Satan.  Now, was Milton trying to tell us that being bad was more fun than being good?

...


Okay... don't write this down, but I find Milton probably as boring as you find Milton.  Mrs. Milton found him boring, too.  He, uh, he's a little bit long-winded, he doesn't translate very well into our generation, and his jokes are terrible.  But that does not relieve you from your responsibility for this material!  Now, I'm waiting for reports from some of you!  Listen, I'm not joking!  This is my job!