What was the last book you read?

[Konstantin]

"Seven Days to Live" by Nick Yarris. Yarris is a convicted rapist and murderer who spent 21 years on death row. He got involved in lots of violence started by prison staff and was eventually cleared on DNA evidence which the courts said was lost. Amazing book, hard to get hold of in the UK.

[Hiking Fox]

Animal Liberation - Peter Singer.

I hate that book! 'Free range eggs are acceptable because you don't kill the chickens'.

Errr right.

[HumanGazelle]

Trick or treatment?: alternative medicine on trial - by Simon Singh & Edzard Ernst. This is an awesome book and puts the boot into all the dodgy "therapies" out there.

Which ones are covered?

Acupuncture, homeopathy, aromatherapy, reflexology, chiropractic therapy and herbal medicine. For some of the above he says that there are some circumstances where they have either minor medical or theraputic benefit or have at least not been proven to have no benefit. But the tone of the book is to advise distrust of unqualified medical statements.

The most notorious critique in the book has become the chapter on chiropractic treatments, as the British Chiropractic Association has launched a rather petulant but nevertheless very real libel lawsuit against Simon Singh. In the actual context that he described the treatment as "bogus", he probably could have chosen safer or more scientific words. But his point was more or less that chiropractitioners are practising without proper evidence to support their discipline, (whether that be recklessly or dishonestly).

This book is a little more rhetorical than Ben Goldacre's "Bad Science" but is still just as worth reading. Anything that upholds the scientific method like these two books should be on the syllabus in every school.

[HumanGazelle]

"Seven Days to Live" by Nick Yarris. Yarris is a convicted rapist and murderer who spent 21 years on death row. He got involved in lots of violence started by prison staff and was eventually cleared on DNA evidence which the courts said was lost. Amazing book, hard to get hold of in the UK.

I heard him telling his story in a radio interview, perhaps a year ago. It was a shocking and moving tale. How was the book?

[IronGirl]

Last book I read was - Feet in the Clouds by Richard Askwith. Thoughly enjoyed it and have a renewed interest in fell running ever since. Motivated me to get out there and have a go. Also gave me lots of silly ideas!!!

Curently half way through Just a little run around the World by Rosie Swale Pope. An inspirational and very brave lady. What she is currently putting her self through in Siberia puts into perspective conditions in the UK at present.

[Konstantin]

"Seven Days to Live" by Nick Yarris. Yarris is a convicted rapist and murderer who spent 21 years on death row. He got involved in lots of violence started by prison staff and was eventually cleared on DNA evidence which the courts said was lost. Amazing book, hard to get hold of in the UK.

I heard him telling his story in a radio interview, perhaps a year ago. It was a shocking and moving tale. How was the book?

He did half hour radio programme on Radio 4, which is still available on his site (www.nickyarris.com). Not sure if that's the one you mean, but I found it amazing.

The book is excellent, really compelling and engrossing. He's got an easy writing style and so much to tell. The extreme nature of his experiences mean that every page has got something that grabs your attention. He lost part of his sight whe he was forced to fight another prisoner so guards could bet on the fight, but that's hardly mentioned.

Read the book if you can. I hear he's left the UK and is gojng back to the US, I just hope he's happy.

[Konstantin]

Trick or treatment?: alternative medicine on trial - by Simon Singh & Edzard Ernst. This is an awesome book and puts the boot into all the dodgy "therapies" out there.

Which ones are covered?

Acupuncture, homeopathy, aromatherapy, reflexology, chiropractic therapy and herbal medicine. For some of the above he says that there are some circumstances where they have either minor medical or theraputic benefit or have at least not been proven to have no benefit. But the tone of the book is to advise distrust of unqualified medical statements.

Hmmm, I'm really sceptical of some of these books. Sure, there's some really pointless 'treatments' available, and some real cowboys. But I've seen stuff done with reflexology that deomstrates a real effect. I've benefitted loads from the Buteyko method, which is based on mainstream medical principles relating to oxygen exchange. It's passed clinical trials showing 90% drop in symptoms, while placebo groups got no better. Yet there's loads of ill feeling against it from a lot medical researchers and doctors. Hopefully this book is critical rather than the obsessive debunking that unfortunately goes on.

[Gelert]

If it's passed clinical trials against placebos (especially with an outcome like that!) then it's no longer alternative medicine by definition. Ill feeling is just then ill feeling. You'll find medics with obsessive ill feelings about things as trivial as ambulance dressings.

I'm currently reading Heinrich Harrer's book Seven Years in Tibet.

[City_of_F]

Just finished "Yakuza: Japan's Criminal Underworld" by Kaplan and Dubro. Good read as I really had no idea that the yakuza were that deeply involved in politics.

I'm also in the middle of reading "NOAA Diving Manual: Diving for Science and Technology, Fourth Edition" by James Joiner. Really interesting stuff!

[JS]

I read revolutionary road by richard yates - enjoyed it and didn't see the movie so not sure if that made it more enjoyable. It's about an american family in the 50's who move to sururbia for the suburban dream. I liked the way the characters interact.

Life of Pi - Yann Martel - i kind of enjoyed it but then got a little perturbed by the descriptions of some of the killings in it (animal) - it had a feel of lord of the flies about it.

The Magus - John Fowles - I enjoyed this book. A very strange book about a guy who works at a school on a greek island and meets a guy on the island who isn't all he seems to be. A bit out there.

[City_of_F]

Just finished "The Road" by McCarthy.

Awsome book! Very gripping. I managed to finish it off in a day as I couldn't put it down.

[helmut]

Just finished "The Road" by McCarthy.

Awsome book! Very gripping. I managed to finish it off in a day as I couldn't put it down.

its great isn't it... have you had a chance to see the movie? what did you think? i was disappointed

[vegan hal]

Just finished "The Road" by McCarthy.

Awsome book! Very gripping. I managed to finish it off in a day as I couldn't put it down.

its great isn't it... have you had a chance to see the movie? what did you think? i was disappointed

i loved that book too. read it about a yr ago. I wanted to see the movie too when i saw a preview. good actors in it. now i don;t know. I REALLY love the Cohen brothers take on No Country for Old Men. Read that book a year or so before the movie came out and was blown away by the movie version.

me, the last book i read was
Uneasy Rider: Travels Through a Mid-Life Crisis (Paperback)

what can i say, i'm 40, and my old man bought this for me since i'm an avid motorcycle rider.

[City_of_F]

Just finished "The Road" by McCarthy.

Awsome book! Very gripping. I managed to finish it off in a day as I couldn't put it down.

its great isn't it... have you had a chance to see the movie? what did you think? i was disappointed

Girlfriend and I are going to go see it on Friday (hopefully it is still playing). We're both kind of afraid of disappointment, so I guess I'll drop my expectations. I'm still curious to see it.


ADD: I also just finished "Social Injustice: How Ghettos Happen" by Hilfiker. Really interesting stuff, actually. It is basically about "white flight" and the history of how the ghettos were formed. Kind of disturbing how cold-blooded the whole process was...

[flightlessbirds]

Just finished: "The Drunkards Walk: How Randomness Rules Our Lives" by Leonard Mlowdinow.

Really neat book all about randomness and how chance affects our lives. Our brains are apparently not very good at dealing with randomness. Lots of stats and math and brain science for me to nerd out on with lots of good stories and examples. I find myself thinking about stats and probabilities all the time now whenever someone mentions some amazing event that seems highly improbable. Or when I catch myself being like "oh, 3 street lights burnt out as I was walking by on my way home today!" I now start thinking about how probable that really is instead of marveling at my ability to shut off street lights (okay I never actually believed I could but I thought about it).

Have been enjoying the non-fiction these days.