Reading List

I enjoy reading. In fact, it may be the only thing that I do very well. Because of this, and because I believe strongly that the ability to read is important in life, I encourage everyone to read as much as he or she can. The written word, more so than science or technology or Big Mac's, is the crowning achievement of mankind.

Reading gives you the opportunity to listen to what someone else has to say. And the written word usually represents a more careful and considered means of communication when compared to speech. I cannot talk with physicist Richard Feynman, since he died in 1988, but I can listen carefully to what he has to say through the several books he left. Of course, you do not have to read only non-fiction. Writers of fiction often have as much to say, if not more, than do those who write non-fiction.

Richard Feynman (1918-1988)

My personal goal is to read at least 100 books each year, as well as listening to some audio books and reading the usual newspapers and magazines. For a couple years now I've kept a database of books. I've converted this database to several different formats, including MS Excel, CSV, and RTF. Maintaining a reading list serves two purposes for me: First, it gives me a mechanism to record the names of books that I would like to read when I come across them in reviews or articles. Second, it makes it easier for me to recommend books to others.

If you are interested in downloading this book list, you can download it here in either format.

Download MS Excel format reading list.

Download CSV format reading list.

Download RTF format reading list.

 

If you are interested in just browsing the list, here it is in table form. I'm sorry, but I'm a little lax in filling out some of the fields.

AUTHOR

TITLE

TYPE

RATING

Achenbach, Joel

Captured by Aliens

Non-fiction

 

Achenbach, Joel

Why Things Are

Non-fiction

Good

Aczel, Amir D.

Fermat's Last Theorem

Science

 

Aczel, Amir D.

Probability 1

Science

 

Ambrose, David

Superstition

Novel

Poor

Ambrose, Stephen

Nothing Like It in the World

History

Ambrose, Stephen

Undaunted Courage

History

Ashley, Mike ed.

Locked-Room Mysteries and Impossible Crimes

Short Stories

 

Atkins, Peter W.

Creation Revisited

Science

 

Atkins, Peter W.

The Second Law

Science

 

Banfield, Edward

The Unheavenly City

Social Commentary

 

Bang, Richard

The Lost River

Adventure

 

Barbour, Ian G.

Unknown

   

Barker, Clive

The Essential Clive Barker

Horror

 

Barrow, John

Impossibility

Science

 

Baum, L. Frank

The Annotated Wizard of Oz

Novel

 

Beckmann, Petr

Pi

History of Science

 

Berger, Thomas

The Return of Little Big Man

Novel

 

Bernhardt, William

Cruel Justice

Novel

 

Bernhardt, William

Dark Justice

Novel

 

Bernhardt, William

Deadly Justice

Novel

 

Birkerts, Sven

Readings

General

 

Blackburn, Simon

Think

Philosophy of Science

 

Blackmore, Susan

The Meme Machine

Science

 

Blease, Kathleen

One Dark Night

Short Horror Stories

 

Bourke, Joanna

An Intimate History of Killing

History

 

Bowden, Mark

Black Hawk Down

History

 

Breen, John L. and Ed Gorman

Sleuths of the Century

Short Story/Mystery

 

Brehm, Jack

That Others May Live

Biography

Poor

Brown, Dale

The Tin Man

Novel

Sucks

Buell, Thomas B.

The Warrior Generals: Combat Leadership in the Civil War

History

 

Calne, Donald B.

Within Reason: Rationality and Human Behavior

Science

 

Campbell, Steve

Statistics You Can't Trust

Science

 

Camus, Albert

The Stranger

Novel

 

Carr, Caleb

The Alienist

Novel

 

Cavelos, Jeanne

The Science of Star Wars

Science

 

Chowdhury, Bernie

The Last Dive

Nonfiction

 

Clancy, Tom

Rainbow Six

Novel

 

Clancy, Tom

The Bear and the Dragon

Novel

 

Clancy, Tom

The Sum of All Fears

Novel

 

Clancy, Tom

Without Remorse

Novel

 

Clegg, Douglas

The Halloween Man

Horror

 

Coben, Harlan

Tell No One

Novel

 

Collier, Peter and David Horowitz

The Kennedys: An American Drama

Biography

 

Connelly, Joe

Bringing Out the Dead

Novel

Good

Cook, Robin

Vector

Novel

Good

Cookman, Scott

Ice Blink

History

 

Coonts, Stephen

Flight of the Intruders

Novel

 

Cowley, Robert

What If?

History

 

Coyle, Harold

The Ten Thousand

Novel

 

Cromer, Alan

Connected Knowledge

Philosophy of Science

 

Davis, Robert

The Plutonium Murders

Novel

 

Dawkins, Richard

Unweaving the Rainbow

Philosophy of Science

Very good

De Mers, Joe

The Return

Novel

Good

DeMille, Nelson

The Charm School

Novel

 

DeMille, Nelson

The Lion's Game

Novel

 

DeMille, Nelson

The Talbot Odyssey

Novel

 

DeMille, Nelson, & Thomas Block

Mayday

Novel

 

Dennett, Daniel C.

Consciousness Explained

Science

Excellent

Dennett, Daniel C.

Darwin's Dangerous Idea

Philosophy of Science

Good

Dennett, Daniel C.

Elbow Room: The Varieties of Free Will Worth Wanting

Psychology

 

Dennett, Daniel C.

Kinds of Minds

Psychology

 

Deutsch, David

The Fabric of Reality

Philosophy of Science

 

Dickinson, Martin

The Other Side of Everest

Adventure

 

Diffie, Whitfield & Susan Landau

Privacy on the Line

Social Commentary

 

Donaldson, Stephen

Lord Foul's Bane

Novel

 

Donaldson, Stephen

The Illearth War

Novel

 

Donaldson, Stephen

The Power that Preserves

Novel

 

Donaldson, Stephen R.

Reave the Just and Other Tales

Fiction

 

Edelman, Gerald M.

Bright Air, Brilliant Fire

Science

Good

Edmundson, Mark

Nightmare on Main St.

Social Commentary

 

Eickhoff, Randy Lee

Bowie

Historical Novel

Good

Eickhoff, Randy Lee

The Fourth Horseman

Historical Novel

 

Eickhoff, Randy Lee

The Raid

Historical Novel

 

Ferguson, Kitty

Measuring the Universe

Science

 

Ferris, Timothy

The Whole Shebang

Science

 

Feynman, Richard P.

QED - The Strange Theory of Light and Matter

Science

Excellent

Fitchen, John

The Construction of Gothic Cathedrals

History

 

Fletcher, Tony

Moon: The Life...

Science

 

Flynn, Joseph

The Next President

Novel

 

Flynn, Vince

Term Limits

Novel

 

Forsyth, Frederick

The Deceiver

Short Story

 

Forsyth, Frederick

The Negotiator

Novel

 

Frazer, James George

The Golden Bough

Social Anthropology

 

Frazier, Charles

Cold Mountain

Historical Novel

 

Garber, Joseph R.

Vertical Run

Novel

 

Gardner, Martin

The New Age: Notes of a Fringe Watcher

Philosophy of Science

Very good

Gardner, Martin

Weird Water and Fuzzy Logic

Science

 

Gilovich, Thomas

How We Know What Isn't So

Philosophy of Science

Good

Gleick, James

Chaos

Social Commentary

 

Gleick, James

Faster

Social Commentary

 

Gleiser, Marcello

The Dancing Universe: From Creation Myths to the Big Bang

Science

 

Godfrey, Laurie

Scientists Confront Creationism

Science

 

Gottlieb, Anthony

The Dream of Reason

Philosophy

 

Gould, Stephen

The Lying Stones of Marrakech

Essays

Poor

Gould, Stephen Jay

Questioning the Millennium

Philosophy of Science

Muddled

Greenberg, Martin ed.

Murder Most Medieval

Short stories

 

Greene, Brian

The Elegant Universe

Science

 

Gribbin, John

In the Beginning

Science

 

Gribbin, John

Stardust

Science

 

Gribbin, John

The Birth of Time

Science

 

Gribbin, John

The Search for Superstrings, Symmetry, and the Theory of Everything...

Science

Satisfactory

Gross, Paul and Norman Levitt

Higher Superstition

Philosophy of Science

 

Gross, Paul R.

The Flight from Science and Reason

Philosophy of Science

 

Gutmann, Stephanie

The Kinder, Gentler Military

Commentary

 

Harris, Robert

Enigma

Novel

 

Henderson, Charles

Silent Warrior

Nonfiction

 

Hernon, Peter

8.4

Novel

Good

Hillman, David and David Gibbs

Century Makers: One Hundred Clever Things....

History

 

Hofstader, Douglas, and Daniel Dennett, eds.

The Mind's I

Psychology

 

Hunter, Stephen

Hot Springs

Novel

 

Hunter, Stephen

Time to Hunt

Novel

Satisfactory

Jenkins, McKay

The White Death: Tragedy and Heroism in an Avalanche Zone

Adventure

 

Jones, Stephen ed.

Dark Detectives

Short stories

 

Jones, Steve

Darwin's Ghost

Science

 

Junger, Sebastian

The Perfect Storm

Adventure

 

Kauffman, Stuart

At Home in the Universe

Philosophy of Science

Muddled

Kaye, Marvin ed.

Treasury of Horror Stories

Short stories

 

Kent, Gordon

Peacemaker

Novel

OK

King, Stephen

Bag of Bones

Novel

 

King, Stephen

On Writing

Essay

 

King, Stephen

The Waste Lands

Novel

 

King, Stephen

Wizard and Glass

Novel

 

Koerner, David and Simon LeVay

Here be Dragons

Science

 

Koontz, Dean

Whispers

Novel

Very good

Krakauer, Jon

Into Thin Air

Adventure

 

Larson, Erik

Isaac's Storm

Adventure

 

Snicket, Lemony

The Bad Beginning: A Series of Unfortunate Events

Novel

 

Loftus, Elizabeth

Witness for the Defense

Psychology

Poor

Ludlum, Robert

The Apocalypse Watch

Novel

 

Ludlum, Robert

The Aquitane Progression

Novel

 

Ludlum, Robert

The Parsifal Mosaic

Novel

 

Lundy, Derek

Godforsaken Sea

Adventure

 

Maas, Peter

The Terrible Hours

Adventure

 

Macgregor, Douglas

Breaking the Phalanx

History

 

Mackay, John

Pinkertons

History

 

MacNee, Patrick

The Avengers and Me

Biography

 

Manchester, William

Goodbye Darkness

Autobiography

 

Marks, Leo

Between Silk and Cyanide

History

 

Marshall, William

Yellowthread St. mysteries

Novel

 

Matthiessen

The Snow Leopard

History

 

Maxim, John R.

Whistler's Angel

Novel

 

Maxtone-Graham, John

Safe Return Doubtful

History

 

Mazower, Mark

Dark Continent

History

 

McCarty, Cormac

Blood Meridian

Novel

 

McCourt, Frank

Angela's Ashes

Biography

 

McNab, Andy

Crisis Four

Noveu

 

Mills, Kyle

Phoenix Rising

Novel

 

Mills, Kyle

Storming Heaven

Novel

 

Mills, Kyle

Storming Heaven

Novel

 

Montalbano, William D.

Basilica

Novel

Good

Morrell, David

Black Evening

Short Stories

 

Morrell, David

First Blood

Novel

 

Morrell, David

The Covenant of the Flame

Novel

 

Morrell, David

The Fraternity of the Stone

Novel

 

Morrell, David

The Last Reveille

Novel

 

Morrell, David

The League of Night and Fog

Novel

 

Morris, Richard

Dismantling the Universe

Science

 

Morris, Richard

The Universe, the Eleventh Dimension, and Everything

Science

 

Morris, Richard

Time's Arrows

Science

 

Murdoch, Iris

Metaphysics as a Guide to Morals

Philosophy

Difficult

Myers, John Myers

Doc Holliday

Biography

 

Nance, John J.

Blackout

Novel

 

Nance, John J.

Headwind

Novel

 

Nance, John J.

Medusa's Child

Novel

 

Nancy, Ted L.

Letters from a Nut

Humor

 

Nancy, Ted L.

More Letters from a Nut

Humor

 

Niven, Jennifer

The Ice Master

History

 

Nozick, Robert

Philosophical Examinations

Philosophy

 

Nozick, Robert

Socratic Puzzles

Philosophy

 

Nozick, Robert

The Examined Life: Philosophical Meditations

Philosophy

Muddled

O'Rourke, P. J.

All the Trouble in the World

Humor

Excellent

O'Rourke, P. J.

Eat the Rich

Humor

Very Good

O'Rourke, P. J.

Give War a Chance

Humor

Very good

O'Rourke, P. J.

Holidays in Hell

Humor

Very Good

Palliser, Charles

The Unburied

Novel

 

Panati, Charles

Panati's Extraordinary Origins of Everyday Things

History

 

Pennock, Robert T.

Tower of Babel

Philosophy of Science

 

Penrose, Roger

The Emperor's New Mind: Concerning Computers, Minds, and the Laws of Physics

Philosophy of Science

 

Philbrick, Nathaniel

In the Heart of the Sea

History

 

Phillips, Robert (ed.)

Nightshade: 20th Century Ghost Stories

Horror

 

Pinker, Steven

How the Mind Works

Science

 

Poundstone, William

Labyrinths of Reason

Philosophy of Science

 

Pressfield, Stephen

Tides of War

Novel

 

Pressfield, Steven

Gates of Fire

Historical Novel

Excellent

Preston, Douglas, & Lincoln Child

Reliquary

Novel

Poor

Preston, Richard

The Cobra Effect

Novel

Poor

Preston, Richard

The Hot Zone

History

Good

Quammen, David

The Boilerplate Rhino: Nature in the Eye of the Beholder

Natural History

 

Rakoff, David

Fraud

Biograph. essays

Very good

Randi, James

Flim-Flam: Psychics, ESP, Unicorns, and Other Delusions

Science

Very good

Randi, James

The Mask of Nostradamus

Nonfiction

Very good

Read, Piers Paul

The Templars

History

 

Reeve, Simon

One Day in September

History

 

Reeves-Stevens, Judith & Garfield

Icefire

Novel

Average

Rhodes, Richard

The Making of the Atomic Bomb

History

 

Rhodes, Richard

Why They Kill: The Discoveries of a Maverick Criminologist

Sociology

 

Robinson, Patrick

H. M. S. Unseen

Novel

 

Robinson, Patrick

U.S.N. Seawolf

Novel

 

Rosa, Joseph G.

Wild Bill Hickok: The Man and the Myth

Biography

 

Rose, David and Ed Douglass

Regions of the Heart

Adventure

 

Rowling, J. K.

Harry Potter and...

Novel

 

Russ, Martin

Breakout: The Choisin Reservoir Campaign

History

 

Sanders, Lawrence

The 8th Commandment

Novel

Poor

Sawyer, Robert J.

Calculating God

Novel

 

Schacter, Daniel L., and Elaine Scarry

Memory, Brain, and Belief

Essays

 

Schechter, Harold

Nevermore

Historical Novel

Barely OK

Shaara, Michael

The Killer Angels

Historical Novel

Very good

Sheldon, Garrett Ward

What Would Jefferson Say?

Commentary

 

Shermer, Michael

Why People Believe Weird Things

Psychology

Very good

Silva, Daniel

The Kill Artist

Novel

 

Silva, Daniel

The Marching Season

Novel

 

Silver, Brian

The Ascent of Science

Philosophy of Science

Excellent

Singh, Simon

The Code Book

Science

 

Smith, Martin Cruz

Havana Bay

Novel

 

Smith, Martin Cruz

Red Square

Novel

 

Sokal, Alan

Fashionable Nonsense: Postmodern Intellectuals' Abuse of Science

Philosophy of Science

 

Sosa, Paul

The Complete Idiot Letters

Humor

 

Sowell, Thomas

Conquests and Cultures

Political commentary

 

Stevenson III, Robert Louis

Bright Star

Novel

Satisfactory

Stewart, Ian

The Magical Maze

Philosophy of Science

Good

Stone, Robert

Dog Soldiers

Novel

 

Stone, Robert

The Damascus Gate

Novel

 

Straub, Peter

Magic/Terror

Short stories

 

Strauss, Barry S. and Josiah Obee

The Anatomy of Error

History

 

Tales of Terror

Hitchcock, Alfred

Short Stories

 

Tessier, Thomas

Ghost Music and Other Tales

Horror

 

Thorp, Raymond W. and Robert Bunker

Crow Killer

Biography

 

Trefil, James

The Dark Side of the Universe

Science

 

Trefil, James S.

The Moment of Creation

Science

 

Turtledove, Harry

The Guns of the South

Novel

 

Unknown

Imagining Atlantis

History

 

Vogel, Steven

Cats' Paws and Catapults

Science

 

Wallechinsky, David

David Wallechinsky's Twentieth Century

History

 

Ward, Peter D. and Donald Brownlee

Rare Earth: Why Complex Life is Uncommon in the Universe

Nonfiction

 

Weekley, Carolyn

The Kingdoms of Edward Hicks

Fine Arts

 

Weiner, Jonathan

Time, Love, Memory: A Great Biologist and His Quest for the Origins of Behavior

Science

 

Wilkes, Roger (ed.)

The Mammoth Book of Murder and Science

Non-fiction

 

Wilson, F. Paul

All the Rage

Novel

 

Wilson, F. Paul

Conspiracies

Novel

 

Wilson, F. Paul

The Barrens and Others

Fiction

Very good

Winter, Douglas ed.

Prime Evil

Horror (anthology)

 

Wolpert, Lewis

The Unnatural Nature of Science

Philosophy of Science

 

 

 

If you have any questions or remarks, send mail to me. I would be particularly interested in your comments on any of these books.

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