What was the last book you read?

[soniczip]

bronisław malinowski - argonauts of the western pacific (1922)
fascinating! a classic of anthropological literature, it describes "kula" exchanges between populations of the trobriand islands (now known as the kiriwina islands) and other archipelagos east of papua new guinea (milne bay province). the kula exchanges are particular because they involve two products which have no use value but, nonetheless, catalyse the entire life of the populations involved. argonauts is also the first "modern" anthropological work, in that it thoroughly combines practical and theoretical research in one person.

Nice. I never read the whole book but was very familiar with it. I would suggest reading, "A Diary in the Strict Sense of the Term", which was released after Malinowski's death. I studied it and Levi-Strauss', "Tristes Tropiques", in my final year of uni. They both give great insight into what made these guys tick.

most definitely! as soon as i read about it, i decided i wanted to read the the posthumous diary too. also tristes tropiques is in my list actually; but i first need to complete another set of books for my exams.

[chriss]

Just finished 'Born To Run' by Christopher McDouglall. What an amazing book, I couldn't put it down & I'm not ever a reader!
Not a 'vegan' book, but does feature ultra runner & vegan Scott Jurek. I'm now inspired, have fresh motivation & some new ideas to revamp my running.

I'm sure others have read it & it has been mentioned before, but I'm not looking through 13 pages! I would suggest it to any runners looking for inspiration.

[soniczip]

ruth benedict - the chrysanthemum and the sword (1946)
commissioned by the us office of war information just after hiroshima, it's a very interesting insight on japanese society at the time of their surrender.

[soniczip]

evans-pritchard, e. e. - the nuer: a description of the modes of livelihood and political institutions of a nilotic people (1940)
another classic of anthropology, it's a study of political dinamics in a people without any centralized power.

[beforewisdom]

The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood.

Amazing book. It was written back in the 80s before Islam was all over the American news yet the author looked ahead to see Islamaphobia used as a prelude to oppression. Fairly chilling to read as American because our government is already visibly infested with Christian fundamentalists who make the US into a copy of "The Handmaid's Tale" if they could.

[soniczip]

bronisław malinowski - argonauts of the western pacific (1922)
fascinating! a classic of anthropological literature, it describes "kula" exchanges between populations of the trobriand islands (now known as the kiriwina islands) and other archipelagos east of papua new guinea (milne bay province). the kula exchanges are particular because they involve two products which have no use value but, nonetheless, catalyse the entire life of the populations involved. argonauts is also the first "modern" anthropological work, in that it thoroughly combines practical and theoretical research in one person.

Nice. I never read the whole book but was very familiar with it. I would suggest reading, "A Diary in the Strict Sense of the Term", which was released after Malinowski's death. I studied it and Levi-Strauss', "Tristes Tropiques", in my final year of uni. They both give great insight into what made these guys tick.

most definitely! as soon as i read about it, i decided i wanted to read the the posthumous diary too. also tristes tropiques is in my list actually; but i first need to complete another set of books for my exams.

and i finally did:
bronislaw malinowski - a diary in the strict sense of the term (1967)
but i found it extremely boring, especially the first part. apart from the continuous mood swings, health swings, love swings, and his never achieved proposition to stop reading novels, there isn't much more. many scholars used this diary to discredit the malinowskian "mith" and his objectivity at work (especially because he often treated and judged indigenous people like shit, when in a bad mood), but i don't think anything concrete, from this reading, can justify such a judgnment. he simply was a human being and had his ups & downs, like anybodyelse (or maybe a bit more), but this doesn't mean he couldn't be a serious and capable researcher.

[soniczip]

mordecai richler - barney's version (saw the movie as well but, of course...)
a.c. clarke - childhood's end

[vegan hal]

just finished this. absolutely incredible.

Three Cups of Tea: One Man's Mission to Promote Peace . . . One School at a Time

[Konstantin]

Recent finished The Secret Life of Pee by Sally Magnusson. It's a history of practical uses of urine in textiles, brickmaking, agriculture, medicines, industry and so on. Very interesting!

[Catt Queen]

The China study...

[Konstantin]

'Fifty Dead Men Walking' by Martin McGartland. He was a lad who grew up in Belfast and joined the IRA so he could pass info to Special Branch and prevent some of their more horrific attacks. The IRA got him in the end but he escaped and now lives in hiding. Absolutely fascinating book.

[xfritzx]

Tales of the Iron Road- "Steam Train" Maury Graham Excellent autobiography by the multiple "King of the Hobos". A great insight into the lives of migrant workers after the great depression, and the mindset of travelling individuals in general.

A Peipers tale- Allan Peiper Autobiography of one of the first Aussie cyclists that tried to crack the european peloton in the 80s. Personally I really enjoyed his description of growing up in the outback, dealing with an abusive father and chucking it all in to race in Belgium on a shoe string budget.

[Fallen_Horse]

The China study...

Hey me too! That and Happiness: A Guide to Developing Life's Most Important Skill (http://www.amazon.com/Happiness-Guide-Developing-Lifes-Important/dp/0316167258/ref=tmm_pap_title_0)

[thestoatyone]

Chavs: The demonisation of the working class interesting stuff, persuasively argued.

edit: Bloody auto correct...

Also edit: free read of the first coupla paragraphs

[KaliBaby]

Chaos: The demonisation of the working class interesting stuff, persuasively argued.

stoaty... a leftist?

I seem to have a short attention span these days. I'm in between books, going back and forth. Sometimes it helps to take a breather.

"Class and Revolution in Ethiopia" - John Markakis and Nega Ayele

"Understanding Classical Sociology: Marx, Weber and Durkheim" - Hughes, Sharrock and Martin

"Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide" - Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn

Regarding the third book, I disagree with the authors in their push to emancipate women by using their power to be "economic catalysts." So instead of being sexual slaves, let's put them in a Walmart factory in China where they can "make money" for their families. Bullshit. That's not emancipation. It's a shift from one kind of exploitation to another.

What ever happened to wanting to emancipate the oppressed and exploited for the simple fact that they are human? It's sad the authors felt they needed to convince readers that women deserved better because they are "key" to increasing GDP and ending global poverty by expanding capitalism's "benefits" to every inch of the earth.

Rosa Luxemberg's Reform or Revolution comes to mind. If the authors are really serious about empancipating women and ending exploitation, the culprit -- capitalism -- must be dismantled.

Ok, I'm done with my mini-rant haha.