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No Quarter Book Corner – Open Thread

By Linda Anselmi on February 16, 2009 at 10:00 AM in Current Affairs

No Quarter Book Corner – Open thread

We are trying something new at No Quarter. And I think it’s something we can have a lot of fun exploring.

The idea is to feature books and use them as a springboard for discussion on current political, social and economic events, issues or concerns. The focus will be on books that are interesting, insightful, thought provoking, entertaining or topical, in a way that I think other NQ readers may enjoy discussing.

The books can be of any genre, and they don’t have to be brand new or best sellers, but they must be currently available to anyone interested in reading them. My objective is to empower people with information, thought, conversation and laughter while exploring ideas and celebrating the joy of reading.

With this in mind, my role will be to read the books and present a summarized “good parts” version of the meat of what I or others find interesting, so those who may not be familiar with the book will have enough grasp of the topic to feel comfortable joining in. I will also try to provide some context and introspection as to how and why it’s relevant to what is happening now.

Since we are looking for lively and engaging discussions of books, ideas, and current events, we’ll leave ratings and reviews as to literary merit and writing style for others.

So tell me, what interesting books have you read lately?

What kind of topics would you like to discuss?

http://americanpumainitaly.blogspot.com/ American Girl in Italy

I have a few sugegstions, but they are all fictional books that I love!

Wildfire – Nelson Demille
(nuclear bomb wildfire, and terrorists – I think wildfire is true.)

Night Fall – Nelson Demille
(this one is iffy for your book reviews, but it is SUCH a good book! It’s a fictional story surrounding the real crash of TWA Flight 800. SO good!)

Balance of Power – Richard North Patterson
(gun lobbys and gun rights)

Protect and Defend – Richard North Patterson
(abortion)

Conviction – Richard North Patterson
(death penalty)

RNP’s books are well researched, and he interviews tons of politicians, including Bill Clinton, for the interworkings of the WH, and congress, lobbiests, etc.)
Alice

Two wonderful books that give new insight into Afghanistan are “The Kite Runner” and “A Thousand Splendid Suns” — both moving and “can’t put down” books. I especially enjoyed A Thousand Splendid Suns because the focus was on the women of Afghanistan. They opened my eyes to the the tragedies that have occurred in that country and gave me a new perspective on the people there. I highly recommend both books. They are also available from Books on Tape and the reader does an excellent job – you won’t want to get out of the car!
Linda Anselmi

AGII -

I would like to do fiction as well as nonfiction. I have not read these, though a couple are in my must read pile. These are great suggestions.

The challenge to fiction, as far as I can see, will be to keep it a topic oriented discussion so that those who haven’t read the book will still join in and those who are wanting to read the book, but haven’t yet had the chance, won’t feel like the reading experience was ruined.

Maybe with fiction I can pull in multiple books that deal with a topic and take it that route. What do you think?

With nonfiction – its kind of hard to steal the authors thunder.
TexasMirth

How about Ayn Rand’s ANTHEM and/or Yevgeny Zamyatin’s WE? Both deal with socialism and the loss of individual freedoms, both are written by former citizens of Russia, and both deal with the conflict of human longing versus state-ordained behavior. I think they could make for some interesting discussions. A more current novel that in style reminded me of Rand’s and Zamyatin’s, but takes a somewhat more populace position is Mark Brand’s RED IVY AFTERNOON. Uprisings, revolts, and some power to the people held my attention.
http://americanpumainitaly.blogspot.com/ American Girl in Italy

well, perhaps it can be a *group* book review club, and all those who want to participate can read the book, then discuss? You can write the review, and everyone who read can partake in the discussion? b’oh…

however you think will work best. :O)
(I just love those books! haha)
Peggy Sue

Hi AGI. Someone just gave me a copy of Night Falls. I’d never heard of it. But now I’ll have to stick it in my “to read” pile. Thanks!
http://americanpumainitaly.blogspot.com/ American Girl in Italy

it is so good! I love all his books. I am reading the Talbot odessy now. Night Fall has a character, John Corey, who is hilarious. John Corey first appears in Plum Island. Then The Lion’s Game, Night Fall, and Wildfire.
Peggy Sue

I read both Hosseini’s books and really enjoyed them. I agree that “A Thousand Splendid Suns” was even better than the first [for me] because it focused on women’s experiences, while giving the same rich Afghani backdrop. Hosseini definitely hit the market at the right time with the right subject matter.

And yes, they’re “can’t put down” novels.
Linda Anselmi

Alice, these are great suggestions and very topical.

Have you seen the movie of “The Kite Runner”? It’s in my movie queue along with “Arranged”. It’s about two women (one orthodox jew and the other muslim) in America that bond as they face their respective family arranged marriages.

Thank you.
Peggy Sue

One book I’m interested in reading is Niall Ferguson’s “Ascent of Money.” I’ve read a number of Ferguson’s essays in the past and excerpts from the book itself, but in light of our current economic woes, a historical perspective is helpful in getting our minds around what the heck’s going on right now.
Linda Anselmi

I’m with you AGII-

(I just love those books! haha)

We all have our vices, this is mine.

I think a “group” book discussion is a great idea. I’m shying away from using the word “review” simply because I want to focused more on celebrating books and how they impact our lives – and not on “critiquing” which most people associate with a review. I might just be bogged down in the semantics of it.

May be along the lines of this group discussion, we can get guest book presenters? Hmm. Oh, Susan?
Linda Anselmi

Thank you for the suggestion Peggy Sue. Will add it to the list.
oowawa

Well, Peggy Sue, this is a subject I need to know a lot more about, and I certainly want to read this book. Thanks for the suggestion! In addition, I see that PBS has a documentary about this book, and it is watchable online:

http://www.pbs.org/wnet/ascentofmoney/featured/watch-full-program-the-ascent-of-money/24/

A DVD is also available. IMHO, good choice!
oowawa

Linda, I think this is a great idea for No Quarter, and I hope it succeeds. I will do my best to participate, and hope that we have a couple of weeks to read the books before the discussion takes place. There are a number of old classics that many of us have already read, but have become worthy of rereading due to recent events. Among these:

1984
Animal Farm
Brave New World
pretty much anything by Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.

Anything that is really, really long (e.g., Atlas Shrugged) would present difficulties. Best wishes for this!
Linda Anselmi

Thank for the additional info oowawa. Your right this is a good choice.
Linda Anselmi

1984 and animal farm. Yes. thank you. These are great starter picks because they are shorter and so many are already familiar with the stories. I agree, excessive length will tend to be a limiting factor.
http://sonicninjakitty.wordpress.com Sonic Ninja Kitty

This is such an excellent idea!

Our book club just finished The Elephant and the Dragon: The Rise of India and China and What It Means for All of Us by Robyn Meredith. It was first published in July 07 but it gives a great historic overview of the political and economic systems in India and China in the 20th century and demonstrates the interconnectedness of all our economies. The last chapter on what America must do to remain competitive makes for great discussion.

A book on America’s education system would be great, too, if anyone knows of one.
Chicago Joe

i was going to mention 1984 as we are now there with this administration. Also Atlas Shrugged or The Fountainhead.

Where’s John Galt been anyway?
Linda Anselmi

Thank you TM.
Great suggestions.
Alice

Yes, I watched the movie — but I thought it was terrible. The book is 1000 times better. I wouldn’t recommend wasting your time on the movie!
Alice
Susan

I recommend “The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society”, an excellent novel about the German occupation of an island during the Holocaust. This may be timely since there are still press reports of those who continue to deny the reality of the Holocaust.
tfitz

great idea. good suggestions so far.
elise

I read The Kite Runner and thought it was engrossing, but I was disappointed it ended so soon. Does the other one you mentioned take up where Kite Runner left off?
Linda Anselmi

Thanks for the suggestion Susan. I have not heard of the novel and from the title would not have associated the holocaust with it. I will check it out.
elise

I have two suggestions. The first is by Sinclair Lewis, It Can’t Happen Here. The original printing was in 1935, but it was re-released in 2005 I believe. It is a fictional account of a presidential election and illustrates how fragile democracy really is and how fascism could gain a foothold in our country. This book was written in the middle of the Great Depression and it definitely has relevance to what we see happening today.

The second book is also a work of fiction and it was written by Taylor Caldwell, The Captains and The Kings. It has been out of print for a while and if you check on Amazon you may not find it. However, if you Google the name you will find it is available through British book stores and it’s cheap. The author has a fascinating history and a good back ground in international banking and espionage. This book is a fictional account of a group of international bankers who literally control everything though their names are completely unknown to the public. It’s been a while since I read it, but it has come to mind many times over the last two years. It is a frightening example of how real power can be used to start wars, to control the economies of countries around the world and decide who lives or dies.
Linda Anselmi

Thanks Sonic –
Very interesting. I add The Elephant and the Dragon to my list to check out.
Alice

No, “A Thousand Splendid Suns” is not a sequel to The Kite Runner. It is totally different.
I, too, would like to see another book following up where The Kite Runner left off.
Both books are absolutely spell-binding. A must read for everyone, in my opinion.
Alice

Elise
I love Taylor Caldwell’s book, Answer as a Man, also hard to find. But absolutely wonderful. One of my very favorite novels. Have you read it?
She was 80 years old at the time she wrote it — remarkable!
RebelCarol

I’m reading American Lion, Andrew Jackson in the White House by John Meacham. It is a very well-written book about AJ. Although I don’t agree with some of his policies (Indian removal) I am finding the book very interesting.
elise

I did read that Alice, and love it. The Devil’s Advocate is good also. Amazon had some of her books, but the best way to find them is to Google the title.