Book Suggestions

AlicornsPrayer · #1 (**permalink**) 10-23-2007, 10:03 PM

Ok, here's where I guess we need to start suggesting some books so we can get this forum off and running...

Here's one suggested earlier for consideration.

The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd

about:

Living on a peach farm in South Carolina with her harsh, unyielding father, Lily Owens has shaped her entire life around one devastating, blurred memory--the afternoon her mother was killed, when Lily was four. Since then, her only real companion has been the fierce-hearted, and sometimes just fierce, black woman Rosaleen, who acts as her “stand-in mother.”

When Rosaleen insults three of the deepest racists in town, Lily knows it's time to spring them both free. They take off in the only direction Lily can think of, toward a town called Tiburon, South Carolina--a name she found on the back of a picture amid the few possessions left by her mother.

There they are taken in by an eccentric trio of black beekeeping sisters named May, June, and August. Lily thinks of them as the calendar sisters and enters their mesmerizing secret world of bees and honey, and of the Black Madonna who presides over this household of strong, wise women. Maternal loss and betrayal, guilt and forgiveness entwine in a story that leads Lily to the single thing her heart longs for most.

The Secret Life of Bees has a rare wisdom about life--about mothers and daughters and the women in our lives who become our true mothers. A remarkable story about the divine power of women and the transforming power of love, this is a stunning debut whose rich, assured, irresistible voice gathers us up and doesn't let go, not for a moment. It is the kind of novel that women share with each other and that mothers will hand down to their daughters for years to come.

Spencer Collins · #2 (**permalink**) 10-23-2007, 10:21 PM

The Iranian Time Bomb

The Mullah Zealots' Quest for Destruction (Hardcover)

Michael Ledeen

Ledeen, a well-known conservative pundit on Iran, argues passionately for a bolder, better-reasoned American policy toward the Islamic republic. He presents compelling evidence that the Shiite regime has collaborated with al-Qaeda and other Sunni terrorist organizations, and that Iran's Supreme Leader has considered the goal of killing Westerners and Jews throughout the Middle East.

Amazon.com: The Iranian Time Bomb: The Mullah...

Iran is a time bomb and a subject of great importance to our future!

tristanrobin · #3 (**permalink**) 10-23-2007, 10:33 PM

I'm a classic kinda guy.

Faulkner? Hemingway? Fitzgerald? Dickens? Tolstoy?

... but I'm for anything - though I must admit that after a day of reading a bazillion articles about the war in Iraq on the internet, the idea of settling down with a good book on the war in Iraq doesn't exactly turn me on.

AlicornsPrayer · #4 (**permalink**) 10-23-2007, 10:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tristanrobin

I'm a classic kinda guy.

Faulkner? Hemingway? Fitzgerald? Dickens? Tolstoy?

... but I'm for anything - though I must admit that after a day of reading a bazillion articles about the war in Iraq on the internet, the idea of settling down with a good book on the war in Iraq doesn't exactly turn me on.

I kinda have to agree with you there Tristan. Not to interested myself in political discussion to start this forum off with right now...Self-empowerment seems good. Or an easy classic perhaps. Guess that's why KOS's suggestion caught my intrest...It's about personal growth and renewment.

saltwn · #5 (**permalink**) 10-23-2007, 10:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Spencer Collins

The Iranian Time Bomb

The Mullah Zealots' Quest for Destruction (Hardcover)

Michael Ledeen

Ledeen, a well-known conservative pundit on Iran, argues passionately for a bolder, better-reasoned American policy toward the Islamic republic. He presents compelling evidence that the Shiite regime has collaborated with al-Qaeda and other Sunni terrorist organizations, and that Iran's Supreme Leader has considered the goal of killing Westerners and Jews throughout the Middle East.

Amazon.com: The Iranian Time Bomb: The Mullah Zealots' Quest for Destruction: Books: Michael A. Ledeen

Iran is a time bomb and a subject of great importance to our future!

Sounds interesting. I asked the local library to order it for me.

saltwn · #6 (**permalink**) 10-23-2007, 10:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tristanrobin

I'm a classic kinda guy.

Faulkner? Hemingway? Fitzgerald? Dickens? Tolstoy?

... but I'm for anything - though I must admit that after a day of reading a bazillion articles about the war in Iraq on the internet, the idea of settling down with a good book on the war in Iraq doesn't exactly turn me on.

How about Victor Hugo?
And speaking of Tolstoy, I think he wrote "Ignore a fire and it Spreads"? Or was it that Ch__ y guy with the name I can't pronounce?

bhkad · #7 (**permalink**) 10-23-2007, 10:49 PM

This is from the other thread.

Quote:

Originally Posted by AlicornsPrayer

LOL. Well guess that means we better all start agreeing on which book our little club will start off with then eh?

My four suggestions have to do with POLITICS and the matter of understanding the greatest political issue of our time, Islam, Arabs, the Middle East, terrorism and the War on Terror.

1. Milestones by Sayyed Qutb (Free online)

The call to action by the Godfather of modern Jihad.

Quote:

Milestones

Sayyid Qutb is easily one of the major architects and "strategists" of contemporary Islamic revival. Along with Maulana Maududi, the founder of Jamaat-e-Islami, the revivalist movement in South Asia, and Imam Khomeini, the leader of Iran's Islamic revolution, he gave shape to the ideas and the worldview that has mobilized and motivated millions of Muslims from Malaysia to Michigan to strive to reintroduce Islamic practices in their lives and alter social and political institutions so that they reflect Islamic principles. Milestones was written to educate and motivate the potential vanguard of the re-Islamization movement.

Qutb, like most contemporary mujaddids, Islamic revivalists, was distressed with the growing distance between Islamic values, institutions and practices and the emerging postcolonial Muslim societies, specially in his native Egypt. In Milestones, he sought to answer some of the fundamental questions such as why Islam needs to be revived? why no other way of life is adequate? What is the true essence of an Islamic identity and an Islamic existence (he uses the term "concept" to signify these two elements)? How was Islam established by the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) and his companions? Can the same method, which was undoubtedly divine in its conception be replicated again? Qutb is particularly concerned with this issue of "Islamic methodology". He believes that Islamic values and the manner in which they are to be realized (read as were realized by Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) and his glorious companions) both together constitute the faith of Islam.

Relying entirely on the Quran, Qutb uses the concepts of jahiliyya, Islamic concept, Islamic methodology, jihad and Allah's sovereignty, to dilineate the strategy by which Muslims would:

1. realize the true significance and implications of La-ilaha-illallah, having faith in the exclusive unity of Allah (tawhid).

2. understand the imperfections, injustices and moral poverty of jahiliyya.

3. empower themselves by realising the meaning of ashhadu-anna-muhammadur-rasoolullah (bearing witness that Muhammad is Allah's messenger) -- internalizing his method of dawah and submitting to the will and laws of Allah.

4. through this Islamic methodology, as articulated in the Quran and manifested in the practices of Prophet Muhammad, which does not separate theory from practice, and discourse from action, establish an Islamic order. The Islamic order, which is Allah's most significant gift to the entire humanity.

5. The most remarkable aspect of Qutb's book is his insistance on an approach in "stages" and the repeated assertion that the need for implementing Islamic law would not arise until every member of the community had completely submitted to the sovereignty of Allah and by that agreed to live under Allah's laws. Laws would then be framed merely to serve the needs of this "living community of Islam". A far cry from the perception that a handful of Islamists are out to impose an essentialized shariah on all Muslims and non-Muslims living in Muslim lands.

http://www.amazon.com/Milestones-Qut.../dp/0911119426

2. Seven Pillars of Wisdom by T.E. Lawrence (Free online)

Quote:

Seven Pillars of Wisdom

I recently had an intense discussion with an Arab friend of mine about the attitude in the Middle East toward the West. I suggested that the Arabs should trust the West and western motives, and laid blame for the instability in the region at the feet of paranoid extremists. My friend sat quietly for a minute, then looked me square in the eye and asked if I really knew what the hell I was talking about?

He asked if I knew anything about Arab history, or had any idea of West's poor track record in the Middle East? I replied that I knew about as much as most Americans. Not much emphasis was placed on Arab history where I went to school. My friend said that I should learn more of the truth of the matter before making judgments about trusting or NOT trusting.

He suggested that if I wanted to know more of the facts I could start with a book called Seven Pillars of Wisdom, A Triumph by Thomas Edward (T.E.) Lawrence. Seven Pillars is the true story of Lawrence of Arabia by the Lawrence himself. He said the book told an exciting story, and contained a great deal of information about the roots of the current socio-political situation in the Middle East. I agreed to read the book, and we dropped the subject.

A week or so later I was exploring the shelves of my favorite used bookstore and found an old paperback edition of Seven Pillars. I had a little trouble getting into the book at first. Some of the syntax was difficult to understand, and some references lost on a modern reader. However, any difficulty with syntax was soon compensated for by the unfolding adventure story.

http://www.lucidcafe.com/library/cur...entread02.html

3. Future Jihad: Terrorist Strategies Against America by Dr. Walid Phares

What I believe may be the best book to get a complete and unquestionably insightful and accurate view of who, what, where, when, why and how of the goals and nature of Islam and Jihad.

Quote:

Future Jihad

When the airliners took down the World Trade Center towers, Americans struggled to find answers. They found some, but a discernible haze over the minds and eyes of Americans existed in those post 9/11 days. The truth many failed to realize was that the jihadists were already here. They were in our towers; the ivory ones.

The cloud of confusion in the minds of a majority of Americans, including those in government, had been created by the academic community since the 1970s, according to Walid Phares. He has taught at Florida International University, University of Miami and Florida Atlantic University in addition to lecturing at others.

Phares’ book, Future Jihad, examines the historical context of jihad, the groups of radical Islamists that seek to establish a caliphate, as well as the reasons America was unprepared and left in confusion by the attacks on September 11, 2001. Phares is a terrorism and Mid-East expert for MSNBC/NBC as well as a senior fellow with the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies in Washington D.C.

“Endless numbers of scholars, opinion makers, and foreign policy bureaucrats were even blurring the vision of mainstream America,” wrote Phares. “Hundreds of articles, books, panels, and shows played down the threat of jihad and its determination to engage in a ‘wholly and holy’ war against mainland America.”

But how and why was the academic community so wrong about jihadists before 2001?

Phares explains in his book that Bin Laden’s advantage and our unpreparedness, were the result of a jihadist penetration. The penetration began in part with Wahabi [one group of radical Muslims seeking to wage jihad] oil money that “targeted a number of nerve centers such as universities and community and religious organizations.” This funding, beginning in the 70s and continuing through the present day allowed Wahabists to blur the thinking of Americans, effectively blinding them to the threat of jihad.

http://www.futurejihad.com/index.php...d=19&Itemid=35

4. Dying to Win: The Strategic Logic of Suicide Terrorism by Robert Pape

This is one of the books that informs Ron Paul's position on Jihad and the War on Terror and one of the books he recommended that Rudy Giuliani read.

Quote:

Dying to Win

Pape's book takes a flinty-eyed look at the data and presents us with inarguable conclusions that many readers will not like. (Witness the ideological hatchet job below, masquerading as a reader review.) If you can't make yourself believe that US foreign policy (and the foreign policies of other powerful democracies) might somehow be a contributing factor in the proliferation of suicide bombing campaigns we are witnessing today, then don't bother reading this book. If you have to let yourself believe that Islam is the source of most suicide bombing in the world, even if the data shows that it isn't, then don't waste your time reading this book. But if you're tired of not understanding why hundreds of billions of dollars of military hardware, intelligence infrastructure and foreign aid, and hundreds of thousands of US soldiers posted overseas, seems only to buy us more suicide bombers, then perhaps you'd be interested in a fresh idea why this is the case. You may not like Pape's conclusions. You may not be happy about them. But you can't deny that they are based on the data, and that his analysis of the data is manifestly non-ideological in the best sense of that term. If we are going to win the war on terrorism, we had better be prepared to stop thinking ideologically from time to time, and take a look at the facts.

http://www.amazon.com/Dying-Win-Stra.../dp/1400063175

A postscript in support of these books: Reading for pleasure presupposes a reasonably good grasp of the issues that are being decided in our time. I believe it would be terribly irresponsible or fanciful to spend our time reading for pleasure until we have achieved a sound understanding of the scourge that threatens WWIII. To ignore that would be like Emperor Nero's fiddling while Rome burned or dancing a waltz in the Titanic's ballroom while the great ship was sinking, IMHO.

saltwn · #8 (**permalink**) 10-23-2007, 11:04 PM

A long time ago, I read something by Plato (translated). Throughout most of it, they were planning a festival and wanted Socrates to come up with a tale of Greece's heroic past. Socrates' part was mostly about Atlantis.
But one of the other two characters gave a treatise on the universe's creation and described his belief (proxy for Plato's own views?) that there was a supreme
entity who had set things in motion. He believed everything on earth was an exact (albeit tainted due to mortality) copy of its counterpart in heaven. He also reasoned that a doorway needed to be created to perfect man. Only a half mortal-half immortal being could facilitate such a portal.
Does anyone know what play I am talking about?

This is not a trick question. I really have forgotten. As I said it's been years since I read it and would like to pick it up again, this time paying more attention to the Atlantis subject.

AlicornsPrayer · #9 (**permalink**) 10-23-2007, 11:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bhkad

A postscript in support of these books: Reading for pleasure presupposes a reasonably good grasp of the issues that are being decided in our time. I believe it would be terribly irresponsible or fanciful to spend our time reading for pleasure until we have achieved a sound understanding of the scourge that threatens WWIII. To ignore that would be like Emperor Nero's fiddling while Rome burned or dancing a waltz in the Titanic's ballroom while the great ship was sinking, IMHO.

Although I can understand what you are saying here, I do disagree as well. Here we are on a forum, where if we wish to discuss the war and politics, we have several forums readily available. As such, the discussions that would be raised by your book references, actually are being discussed already.

It may seem trivial or irresponsible to you that some may want to discuss something other then war in this particular time and place. But for those who have felt buried in discussions about war and politics, doing so in this manner may just turn them off from wanting to participate in this forum period.

Hence the reason the suggestion to start out small and easy...Afterall, this is a new concept to many, discussing books on more then just an opinionated level of 'pro' and 'con' type of discussions.

And the titles you've suggested, although good reading and thought provoking, would be designed to turn the content of discussion into a 'pro' and 'con' side issue like the other forums this type of topic is currently discussed as.

And I do believe the hopes of those that brought up the suggestion of this forum, wasn't to have yet another outlet to debate current topics. But moreso as a way to think about 'what is the meaning of life' and 'how does the words of the author make me think of myself and where do I fit into the meaning of life'.

In otherwords, literature about the condition of self.

AlicornsPrayer · #10 (**permalink**) 10-23-2007, 11:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by saltwn

A long time ago, I read something by Plato (translated). Throughout most of it, they were planning a festival and wanted Socrates to come up with a tale of Greece's heroic past. Socrates' part was mostly about Atlantis.
But one of the other two characters gave a treatise on the universe's creation and described his belief (proxy for Plato's own views?) that there was a supreme
entity who had set things in motion. He believed everything on earth was an exact (albeit tainted due to mortality) copy of its counterpart in heaven. He also reasoned that a doorway needed to be created to perfect man. Only a half mortal-half immortal being could facilitate such a portal.
Does anyone know what play I am talking about?

This is not a trick question. I really have forgotten. As I said it's been years since I read it and would like to pick it up again, this time paying more attention to the Atlantis subject.

Sounds very familiar. But like you, the title eludes me...Hate when that happens. I know whole books, but can never remember the title of the darn things.

Tell you what...I'll go through my own personal library on ancient philosophies and myths...See if I run across it myself or if I can find it referenced to in one of those sources...

Thread Tools
Show Printable Version Email this Page
Display Modes
Linear Mode Switch to Hybrid Mode Switch to Threaded Mode

The Following User Says Thank You to bhkad For This Useful Post:
Spencer Collins

The Following User Says Thank You to AlicornsPrayer For This Useful Post:
saltwn