Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Dev]

I'd like to make a list of recommendations so that we can find cool books to read during the hot summer.

[chest rockwell]

best non-fiction: Nelson Mandela's autobiography
best fiction: Captain Corelli's mandolin

[Dan The Chainsawman]

I got a secret decoder ring out of a box of captain crunch. The directions were a great read, but a bit wordy at times.


Also look into

Round Ireland with a Fridge and Playing the Moldavians

both books by Tony Hawks and both very amusing.

another good page turner was Chrichill Wanted Dead or Alive by Celia Sandys


I have lately been breaking into the Heinlein genre of Sci Fi and so far I love it. Have Space Suit Will Travel had me enthralled with his writing style and the storyline.

[seoulsucker]

Chuck Palahniuk's Stranger Than Fiction. Several short works ranging from the summer he tried steroids to people who build their own castles in North America.

[RACETRAITOR]

The Psychology of Everyday Things by Donald A Norman.

[flotsam]

The Geography of Thought by Richard Nisbett

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0743255356/103-2916414-9551032?v=glance&n=283155

Guns, Germs and Steel by Jared Diamond

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0393317552/qid=1147071181/sr=2-1/ref=pd_bbs_b_2_1/103-2916414-9551032?s=books&v=glance&n=283155

The Blank Slate by Steven Pinker

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0142003344/qid=1147071251/sr=2-1/ref=pd_bbs_b_2_1/103-2916414-9551032?s=books&v=glance&n=283155

I actually read the last two a while ago, but I recommend them highly.

[Don Gately]

The Devil Drives is a really good biography of Sir Richard Burton.

[gypsyfish]

Spanish Steps

[desultude]

[cypher]

The latest:

The Shadows of Elisa Lynch, Sian Rees: Interesting story, though it was hard to follow the time line at times and it could have been tighter, and I still need to look up a Paraguayan map on the internet so I have a better sense of place.

A Short History of Nearly Everything, Bill Bryson: Very interesting and an easy read.

Guns, Germs and Steel, Jared Diamond: Why is a book on something so interesting so difficult to get through?

Still trying to work through The Civilization of Angkor after 13 months. It'll happen one day.

[Bulsajo]

I've been reading mostly non-fiction these days, and almost all of them have been 'must reads'. The usual book review sources are invaluable, as are metacritic's book pages:
http://www.metacritic.com/books/

THE BEST?
By far it has been George Packer's The assassin's Gate: America in Iraq.

I highly recommend the following without setting one above the others- the only exception to this being Packer's The Assassin's Gate
(click on picture to go to the What The Book page for the particular book):

[whitebeagle]

As has been mentioned; 'Nelson Mandela- Long Walk to Freedom'. Appropriate title, its about 675 pgs!
Bit more light-hearted (no pun intended) is 'Stiff (The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers) - Mary Roach'. Great humourous look at dead bodies; how people die and some of the things we do with them; med-school research, crash testing, fertiliser, ballistics testing, training detectives, plastic surgery practice

[Porter_Goss]

Why was my post deleted?

Did I violate the TOS? No.

[VanIslander]

nonfiction: Philosophy and Social Hope by Richard Rorty

fiction: Lonely Planet Korea

[C.M.]

Just finished a collection of short stories by Truman Capote....wonderful stuff, that.
Recently read "The Aquariums of Pyongyang." Might be a tad heartless to point out, but it was not a good book. His was an amazing, terrifying life to be sure....but it was not a good book.
One of the best works of 'literary history' I have ever read is "Koba the Dread: Laughter and the Twenty Millions" by Martin Amis. Amis is an incredible writer.