Looking for some recommendations

[zoe08]

I am looking for some recommendations for non-fiction books mostly. I am tired of the usual fictions novels that I read and am looking for some interesting books. Recently I have read Under the Banner of Heaven by Jon Krakauer. I really enjoyed learning about the Morman religion. I have also read Into Thin Air by him. I read Miracle in the Andes by Nanda Parrado.

I tend to like adventurous types books such as the mountain climbing ones. I also like books like A Child Called It. Books that can be inspirational. And I like biographies/autobiographies if they are about people I am interested in. And books where I can learn about different things.

A wide variety really. A lot of the books I have on my to-read list I can't find at the local library. I would really like some books I could find at the library, cuz I can't really afford to go out and buy much right now.

 

[mehastings]

Have you read A Walk in the Woods by Bill Bryson? It shouldn't be hard to get at the library.

For reasons even he didn't understand, Bill Bryson decided in 1996 to walk the 2,100-mile Appalachian trail. Winding from Georgia to Maine, this uninterrupted 'hiker's highway' sweeps through the heart of some of America's most beautiful and treacherous terrain. Accompanied by his infamous crony, Stephen Katz, Bryson risks snake bite and hantavirus to trudge up unforgiving mountains, plod through swollen rivers, and yearn for cream sodas and hot showers. This amusingly ill-conceived adventure brings Bryson to the height of his comic powers, but his acute eye also observes an astonishing landscape of silent forests, sparkling lakes, and other national treasures that are often ignored or endangered. Fresh, illuminating, and uproariously funny, A Walk in the Woods showcases Bill Bryson at his very best.

Or The Perfect Storm? Also should be easy to get at the library. Then, you can watch the movie with all the hot guys in it!

It was the storm of the century—a tempest created by so rare a combination of factors that meteorologists deemed it "the perfect storm."

When it struck in October, 1991, there was virtually no warning. "She's comin' on, boys, and she's comin' on strong," radioed Captain Billy Tyne of the Andrea Gail from off the coast of Nova Scotia. Soon afterward, the boat and its crew of six disappeared without a trace.

The Perfect Storm is a real-life thriller, a stark and compelling journey into the dark heart of nature that leaves listeners with a breathless sense of what it feels like to be caught, helpless, in the grip of a force beyond understanding or control.

As far as biographies go, what type of people are you interested in?

 

[zoe08]

Thank you for those suggestions. I have not read either. A Walk in the Woods definitely seems like something I would read. I never have watched the Perfect Storm, but I will see if I can find the book. I usually like to read the books first.

As far as people I am interested in....hmmm....well I have read Me and My Shadows: A Family Memoir by Lorna Luft which was mostly about her mother Judy Garland. I really liked that one. I also read Ryan White: My Own Story. I guess I am interested in people who have battled diseases or drugs. I also just read Ice Bound by Dr. Jerri Nielsen (the doctor that discovered she had breast cancer at the South Pole). Hope that helps some.

 

[The waveguide]

Book recommendation

I am looking for some recommendations for non-fiction books mostly. I am tired of the usual fictions novels that I read and am looking for some interesting books.

I am now reading a "City of Djinns: A Year in Delhi" by William Dalrymple. This is a non-fiction, at least as far as I got in it by now, and it is about the author's experiences in New Delhi. Actually I am just back from my holydays in India, which make the reading very enjoyable. The book is funny and sometimes it makes me to go back to India

 

[Proofreader]

If you're into mountaineering books, then Joe Simpson's "Touching the Void" is a must.

 

[mehastings]

If you liked Ryan White: My Own Story, you should read Mark: How a Boy's Courage in Facing Aids Inspired a Town and the Town's Compassion Lit up a Nation by Jay Hoyle.

``Dad, I think it would be better if I just died. Then you wouldn't have to worry about me anymore.'' These heartbreaking words were spoken by the author's hemophiliac son Mark who contracted AIDS from a blood transfusion. The boy died in 1986 at age 14. Hoyle, who teaches at a Catholic school, refused to believe that God would take his son. This mundane log of the family's and Mark's ordeal is nevertheless noteworthy not only because he was the first child with AIDS knowingly allowed to attend public school but also because the community of Swansea, Mass., ultimately rallied behind the junior-high-school student instead of banishing him. We read about the town's initial fear and anger, explosive school meetings and eventual widespread support for Mark's rights as a person with AIDS. His philosophy``A winner never quits and a quitter never wins''helped his family endure the tragedy. The diary interweaves transcripts of radio shows and school meetings, letters and snapshots.

I read the book in 1992 when Swansea opened a new elementary school named after Mark. They gave a copy to each student at the new school. My brothers both got one. It has been a long time since I read it, so I can't tell you much about the quality. It might not be the easist thing to find, but you'd probably like it. I know you can get used copies fairly cheap online.

 

[zoe08]

Thanks everyone for the suggestions!! Those all sound interesting!! I will definitely check them out!

 

[Terry]

Cities of Gold by Douglas Preston retracing Coronado's route on horseback.

 

[Occlith]

Four Corners: Into the Heart of New Guinea: One Woman's Solo Journey by Kira Salak.
If you're in the mood for more by Krakauer read Into the Wild.

 

[zoe08]

Thanks everyone for all the suggestions! I have made a To-read list with all the books suggested on it. So far I haven't had much time for personal reading, cuz I have to read for school. I did order Mark: How a Boy's Courage in Facing Aids Inspired a Town and the Town's Compassion Lit up a Nation by Jay Hoyle off amazon, cuz it was fairly cheap and I will begin it as soon as I get to finish Chicken Soup for the Dog Lover's Soul.

 

[Blindsided]

The Lance Armstrong book was pretty good. I don't even like biking. red dragon, silence of the lambs, hannibal, were all pretty good. Um... harry potter? where the red fern grows, a river runs through it, fight club