My Favorites:

Atlas Shrugged: This book was given to me to read by Gaard. Actually, he started me off on a lot of books. It is a wonderful work by Ayn Rand written sometime in the middle of the century. What could possibly stop the motor of the world? Who would be strong enough to do such a thing? What could drive such a person to harm thousands, millions of people in pursuit of such a goal? The book is very powerfully written (although the 70 page (I'm not kidding) speech does tend to drag), and I am incredibly glad I was given such a book to read. It is incredible how many circumstances Ayn foresaw and wrote into her book. Even though this is a huge book, I very much recommend it to everybody who reads this paragraph.

Fingerprints of the Gods: Whether read for fact or read for fiction, this book is a delicious piece of work which expands the mind to the possibilities of our ancient past. Graham Hancock began researching the stone monuments of Earth, and soon discovered there was more than met the eye. Much more. I don't know if anyone has asked him why he began this quest. I certainly never thought to. What he has discovered though is evidence of a Lost Civilization, highly technologically advanced, whose domain consisted of the entire earth. I can not possibly give an adequate description of this wonderful book. It takes us from South America to Egypt to icy Antarctica in a investigative quest for the truth of human history, which appears to have been swallowed up by the ravages of Time and the Ancient Tempest. Read this book!! For nothing else but the evocative title.

Without Remorse: The epitome of Tom Clancy. This was the first Tom Clancy book shoved under my nose that I actually bothered to read. And now I am a Tom Clancy fan. The man writes so well! I think that the best way to describe the book is to quote from the back cover:

"His code name is Mr. Clark. And his work for the CIA is brilliant, cold-blooded and efficient....But who is he really? In a harrowing tour de force, Tom Clancy shows how an ordinary man named John Kelly crossed the lines of justice and morality--to become the CIA legend, Mr. Clark. It is an unforgettable journey into the heart of darkness. Without mercy. Without guilt. Without remorse."

Other books:

The Cat Who Went To Heaven by Elizabeth Coatsworth (illustrated by Lynd Ward). I mention Lynd Ward because his drawings are wonderful. I was given this book a long time ago, and periodically when I am feeling in a rather down mood I will go back a read this work. For years every time I read this book I would cry. I am not so bad now, but it is still quite a heart wrenching tale. A starving artist's housekeeper in Japan brings home a little cat one day, rather than food. Thus begins the tale of salvation and loyalty for the master of the house and a little calico named Good Fortune.

The Death Gate Cycle by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman (7 books). Joan gave this to me, along with a couple other books that I pilfered from her shelves, before she went off to play hotshot costume designer at a prestigious girl's camp. I have now forgiven her for leaving me alone all summer, because if she hadn't I probably would never have read these books. (She is desperately trying to get me into the fanasy scene.) Two races of demi-gods fought centuries ago. One was cast into a prison-turned-torture chamber. The other withered away, leaving behind weak remnants. Now the Patryn have escaped their prison, and their Lord is determined to take over the worlds that the Sartan created, and destroy the Sartan themselves. He sends his representative, Halpo, to explore the four worlds and search for the Sartan. He finds Alfred, a Sartan living among the lesser races, hiding from his enemies, his friends, and his destiny. Great series. I love the interplay between Halpo and Alfred, as the two ancient enemies realize that when it comes right down to it, the only ones they can trust are themselves. It begins a friendship which they both fight against, and once they have each accepted the other as a friend, the two lay the foundation of what may eventually be peace between the two races. (This is way beyond what the books cover.) One more note: All Hail Zifnab!!! (Zifnab is the bumbling excuse for a higher power who wanders in and out of the series. Joan tells me he is also Fizban in other books by the same authors, but under a different publisher, so they couldn't use the same names.) Here is classic Zifnab, taken from Vol. 2, Elven Star:

"'I'm afraid I still don't know your name, sir,' said the elf, taking a seat next to the old wizard. 'You don't?' the old man asked, looking alarmed. 'No sir. You haven't told me.' 'Drat.' The wizard stroked his beard. 'I was rather hoping you would. You're sure you don't?' 'Yes, sir.' 'Ah, well. Let's see.' The old man muttered to himself. 'Fiz--No, I can't use that. Furball. Doesn't seem quite dignified enough. I have it!' he shouted, smiting Paithan on the arm. 'Zifnab!' 'Bless you!' 'No, no! My name! Zifnab! What's the matter, Sonny?' The old man glared, eyebrows bristling. 'Something wrong with it?' 'Why, er, certainly not! It's...uh...a nice name. Really...nice.'"

Faust by J.W. von Goethe. I just love this story. It is really a big poem. Maybe an Epic, but not really. Faust, a doctor, a lawyer, pretty much an all around been there, done that type of guy, is searching for salvation (in a round about way). So what does he do? He makes a bet with the Devil, Mephisto. Goethe spent 60 years of his life working on this story, taking the basics of the 14^th and 15^th century folk tales and weaving them into an 18^th century tale of damnation and ultimate salvation. A good translation is pretty much a requirement. I've seen some really, really bad ones out there. The older the translation, generally the better.

I, Claudius by Robert Graves. The "autobiography" of the Emperor Claudius. This is a very well written history book. It is based on the premise that the real autobiography the emperor wrote was not, in fact, lost. In it he promised he would tell all the dirt on his family, the good, the bad, everything. Robert Graves does a beautiful job of bringing the angst of the dead Republic to life in the dawning of the fledgling Empire.

Jurassic Park by Michael Crichton. Does this really need any explanation? The movie, by necessity, leaves lots of stuff out. Definitely read the book. You can read how ceradactyls walk on their wings and what T-Rex slobber smells like among other things. Ian Malcom is awesome. Also a pretentious bastard, but hey, he was correct.

The Life of God (As Told By Himself) by Franco Ferucci. A rather philosophical work, it is the rewriting of Mondo Creato, Ferrucci's Italian work. He decided it was simply better to rewrite the work than to translate. Because of this certain parts have been added and others dropped. One of these days I am going to get ahold of the original Italian work to see the differences. I really can't recommend this book to the closed minded. A lot of people would consider it very blasphemous. However, I actually recommend it to fellow atheists. Most of the atheists I know, including myself, tend to look at these types of works. (Maybe it's just me and my friends. Who knows? We're strange.) I have to say that my favorite part is when God is listening and watching the Jewish religious leaders around the time of Jesus and once he hears what they are saying and reflects upon their words he calls himself "the atheistic God".

A Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett. The story of a little girl who is orphaned and left penniless in early 20^th century London. Her indestructible spirit and charm win her friends, make her enemies, and carry her through serf-slavery in the boarding house where she was left before her father died in India. It is a charming story which I recommend to anyone with children. (And I don't even like children!)

The Ninja Series by Eric Van Lustbader. Nick Linnear is a half-Oriental, half-Occidental ninja who lives in New York. These books (The Ninja, The Miko, White Ninja, Kaisho, and Floating City) chronicle his life, his loves, and his enemies. They take the reader across the world, from post atom-bomb Japan to present day New York. Heavily steeped in Oriental tradition, thoughts, concepts and mindsets, I think that this is a pretty good series.

Shogun by James Clavell. Gaard and Joanie will be so proud of me. I finally read this book, and yes, I did like it. Set circa 1600 A.D., it is the story of an Englishman, Blackthorne, who is shipwrecked and captured on Japan. He becomes a pawn in the political intrigue of the time, and while dealing with this new aspect of his life, he must come to terms with life in a strange and completely foreign land; people, both Japanese and Christian, who hate him; and falling in love with a woman who is already married to another man. This is a wonderful book. I haven't read any other of Clavell's books in this timeline. I will most likely wait until Gaard or Joan shove one of them under my nose.

The Vampire Chronicles by Anne Rice (5 books and counting). I personally think The Vampire Lestat is the best written of all the VC's, however Lestat has this tendency to ramble on about things. I recently picked up Interview With the Vampire after not looking at it for a few years, and frankly I had forgotten how enthralling it was. I was only planning on rereading a few pages, and instead I reread the entire book. I recommend the first four books (though Body Thief is really a rewrite of Faust), and is you want to read more adventures of the vampiric crew, go to my Fan Fiction-- Vamp Chron Specs Links. For those who have no idea what the Vampire Chronicles are, my, where have you been? Interview With the Vampire was written in the mid-seventies. It is the story of a vampire, from the vampire's point of view, in all its angst-ridden and guilt filled misery (and glory). The Vampire Lestat was written in 1984. It too is from a vampire's point of view (as are all the Chronicles), this time from Lestat's point of view. (Lestat was the vampire who made Louis, the vampire of the first book). Lestat, while it is very much a sequel to Interview, is more of a prequel. The book was Lestat's response to Louis, and is the story of his life before he met Louis. Queen of the Damned is a direct sequel to the 2^nd book, and then The Tale of the Body Thief and Memnoch the Devil are completely separate tales.

History Books: