2004 Book Log in Review | ElectricRocket's Journal

20 books. That’s all I read in 2004. It seems light. I feel like I must have missed some. But perhaps I just had a toddler.

The Cartoon History of the Universe Book 1 – Larry Gonick
The Cartoon History of the Universe Book 3 – Larry Gonick
The Mismeasure of Man – Stephen Jay Gould
Business Lessons for Entrepreneurs: 35 Things I learned before the Age of Thirty – Mark D. Csordos
The Fun Of It: Stories from the Talk of the Town – New Yorker – Edited by Lillian Ross
Shadow Puppets – Orson Scott Card
Quicksilver: Volume One of the Baroque Cycle – Neal Stephenson
Lies and the Lying Liars Who Tell Them: A Fair and Balanced look at the Right. – Al Franken
How to Buy & Manage Rental Properties – Irene and Mike Milin.
Dress Your Family in Coruroy and Denim – David Sedaris.
The Well of Lost Plots – Jasper Fforde’s
Fluke Or, I Know Why the Winged Whale Sings – Christopher Moore.
The Rattlesnake Master – Beaufort Cranford
Fast Food Nation: The Dark Side of the All-American Meal – Eric Schlosser.
Running With Scissors: a memoir – Augusten Burroughs
The Richest Man in Babylon – George S. Clason
Monstrous Regiment – Terry Pratchett
The Best American Nonrequired Reading 2002 – Edited by Dave Eggers and Michael Cart.
The Difference Engine: Charles Babbage and the Quest to Build the First Computer – Doron Swade
Full House: The Spread of Excellence from Plato to Darwin – Stephen Jay Gould

Currently on my reading table are:

Value Investing with the Masters – Kirk Kazanjian
The Confusion: Volume Two of the Baroque Cycle – Neal Stephenson
The Know-It-All: One Man’s Humble Quest to Become the Smartest Person in the World – A.J. Jacobs
Made In America: My Story – Sam Walton (with John Huey)

—–Edited to add:
21! I forgot about:

21. Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason – Helen Fielding

21 thoughts on “2004 Book Log in Review”

If you didn’t already read Lamb by Christopher Moore, you should. And the Paul Newman book about Newman’s Own (which I’d lend you, but I lent it to someone and forget who).

If you and some people wanted to reread Dante’s Inferno together, I’d do that.

It goes without saying that if you’ve never read The Agony & The Ecstasy, you must.

electricrocket on January 4, 2005 at 3:32 pm said:

Lamb is the only Moore I haven’t read yet, but it sits on my Amazon Wishlist as we type.

Shameless Exploitation in Pursuit of the Common Good : The Madcap Business Adventure by the Truly Oddest Couple is now on my WishList, as is The Agony & The Ecstasy. I’m glad you didn’t go without saying.

How does one read a book together?
- travellight on January 4, 2005 at 3:39 pm said:
  
  I don’t know how, but unless it’s done that way, I’ll never get through it again, and I’d like to while I’ve still got reasonably good sense. Maybe read it out loud?
  - electricrocket on January 4, 2005 at 3:42 pm said:
    
    Perhaps we could get the audiobook, rent a van with a tapedeck, and roadtrip to Northern Canada?
    - travellight on January 4, 2005 at 3:48 pm said:
      
      I suppose we could. I was just going to go hang around Stacey’s office until she read it to me to get me to leave.
      
      OMIGOD. That’s it. Stacey’s in charge of people. Stacey can arrange a series of read throughs for us. We’ll participate and bring snacks so it won’t be a complete pulling of rank on her part.
      
      Can you even believe how smart I am?
    - electricrocket on January 4, 2005 at 3:52 pm said:
      
      Can you even believe how smart I am?
      
      As a matter of fact, I cannot.
      
      It’s perfect. Inferno is a classic. Georgia Shakespeare does classics. I’ll bet a stage version has never been done. Georgia Shakespeare Artistic Director Richard Garner has always wanted to do new works.
      
      Stacey, get on it. Pronto.
    - travellight on January 4, 2005 at 3:57 pm said:
      
      I don’t even need the whole show, I’d be happy with a readthrough.
      
      You make me nervous ordering Stacey around.
    - electricrocket on January 4, 2005 at 4:08 pm said:
      
      Ordering Stacey around has much the same effect as ordering around Stone Mountain, only without the laser show.
    - travellight on January 4, 2005 at 4:12 pm said:
      
      I wouldn’t be surprised if it created fireworks of some sort eventually.
- travellight on January 4, 2005 at 3:51 pm said:
  
  The Agony & The Ecstasy is a very long read, but is beautiful and heartwrenching and stunning in its scope.
  - electricrocket on January 4, 2005 at 3:53 pm said:
    
    The longer, the better.
    
    Some of the saddest moments in life are when a good book comes to an end.
    - travellight on January 4, 2005 at 3:57 pm said:
      
      974 pages. Parts of it made me weep.

I can burn you a copy of The Know-It-All onto CD if you want…I thought it was great commuter fodder.

electricrocket on January 4, 2005 at 6:16 pm said:

Why thank you, but I’m about 2/3 through it already. Might as well finish the job.

If this guy read the Britannica, the least I can do is read his smallish book. 🙂

I loved The Know-It-All! Damon and I went to a workshop at the library that A.J. Jacobs gave. It was so much fun, there were only about 20 people there and he let us ask questions and quizzed us on trivia. And as a fun bonus, his wife and son were there.

Add to your list “The Winter’s Tale” by Mark Helprin. It’s my favorite book. You’ll like it, it’s really long.

electricrocket on January 4, 2005 at 6:33 pm said:

See there, now you’ve spoiled the ending by telling me he has a son! 🙂

I’ve added Winter’s Tale to the list.

I just did a little pruning, and my current wishlist is 47 books long. That’s over two years of reading at my current rate! I don’t know if that’s depressing or exciting!
- jaysaint on January 4, 2005 at 6:49 pm said:
  
  Ooops
  
  I’m sorry, I was reading too fast. I thought you had already finished the book.
  
  Um, I totally made that part up. He was there with his aunt and a collie.
  
  You’ll love “The Winter’s Tale.” It’s beautiful.