[olderthanIusedtobe]

I hadn't heard of it before my dad recommended it to me, but there's a long running series by C.J. Box starring a game warden in Wyoming. Mystery/thriller genre w/ a bit of an environmental/ecology flavor to it. Just started the first book "Open Season" last night. Seems like a page turner/quick read from the taste I got so far.

[gb]

I am sure many of you have read The Boys in the Boat. I think it was one of the best books I've ever read. The last 150 pages were rivetting.

[bobbi]

[bobbi]

[olderthanIusedtobe]

[bobbi]

[graywolf]

[graywolf]

Got back on February 19 from two weeks in Tanzania, including seven days of backpacking & walking the Serengeti. So, I just picked up a copy of George Schaller's Lions of the Serengeti. Looks fascinating.

[Malachai Constant]

A man called Ove

[GaliWalker]

Almost through the first book in Cixin Liu's Three Body Problem trilogy. Cixin Liu is a China's most prolific and popular science fiction writer. (The first and final books in the trilogy have been translated into English by Ken Liu and the second by Joel Martinsen.) The first book, The Three Body Problem, is fantastic. Like the best of hard SF books there's an interesting concept to marvel at in seemingly every chapter. The pace is frenetic, and almost every other chapter reads like a poetic set piece. (By the way, I think the Chinese are coming up with a movie adaptation of the first book this year.) Salivating at the thought of continuing on with the next two books in the triliogy! I can't recommend the series enough.

[lookout bob]

My brother gave me "Nature's Temples: The Complete World of Old Growth Forests" by Joan Maloof. Tends to deal more with eastern forests but is a very interesting take on why they're so important. I too must cast votes for C.J. Box and the Joe Pickett series. Read 'em all and await the new ones.

[Mike Collins]

There is remarkable cohesiveness over the 6,000 mile spread of Eskimo [authors' word] culture. Eskimo Architecture-Dwelling and Structure in the Early Historic Period coauthored by Molly Lee and Gregory A. Reinhardt studies that homogeneity over the arctic regions of the world. Eskimos made much more than igloos as they battled against some of worst climate in the world. Winter steam baths, birthing rooms, death rooms, and dance halls for activity in the summer months are all discussed with helpful diagrams and historic photos. Regrettably much of the architecture presented is from vintage photos as the Inuit have entered, along with us, into the modern age. But the authors investigate those buildings that still exist and, whenever feasible, involve the native people who can articulate the function, meaning, and symbolism of the architecture at this cold corner of the world.

[Bedivere]

As a fan of Sci-Fi I'm wondering why I didn't find the works of Iain M. Banks before just recently. I found "The Hydrogen Sonata" at a bookstore and it was really good, so I did a bit of research and discovered that Mr. Banks has written a LOT of books, both Sci-Fi and in other genres. He died in 2009, IIRC, but he left a lot of books that I'll be happy to work my way through. His first Sci-Fi book was "Consider Phlebas," published over 20 years ago which I took on vacation with me this last couple of weeks. Got about 3/4 of the way through then left it on the airplane and can't find a copy locally so have ordered it online but will have to wait a week or two for it to arrive. In the meantime I've started another one, "Excession" and ordered a couple more. If you like Sci-Fi, Mr. Banks' books are definitely worth a read. Well written with complex characters, great descriptive prose, and highly imaginative. Looking forward to sampling his non-Sci-Fi work as well, which he publishes under the name "Iain Banks," dropping the middle "M."

[GaliWalker]

[Mike Collins]

Although Mercator never traveled beyond northern Europe The World of Gerald Mercator-The Mapmaker Who Revolutionized Geography, by Andrew Taylor, reveals the genius that brought the globe into libraries around the world. The Inquisition forced Mercator into a prison and we are fortunate that he survived and brought us his famous world map of 1569 which shows the projection that bears his name. The author researched this captivating biography in numerous libraries. He writes of the historical period Mercator lived in to help the reader frame the images of that turbulent time.