Does anyone read anymore?

Really? It's cool, and, I believe, it's pretty difficult to find "non-fictional" books, especially in the USA. As for me, I don't like term "fiction". I prefer term "turbo-realism". I mean, "fiction" is a "truth, disguised as lie" and "documentary" is a "lie disguised as truth".

I mean, there is much more truth in stories about space ship battles and blasters or about dangeons and dragons than in stories about "Russian invasion in Ukraine" or "Chemical weapons in Iraq".
In my lifetime, I've probably rend a dozen turbo-realism books. It's just that if I'm going to read, I want to learn knowledge as opposed to something that didn't happen.

And my book collection span a whole spectrum of subjects.
 
In my lifetime, I've probably rend a dozen turbo-realism books. It's just that if I'm going to read, I want to learn knowledge as opposed to something that didn't happen.
When we read about, say, "Star Kingdom of Manticora", it is author's refined understanding of the Great Britain (and specifically Royal Fleet), and, in this sense, it is not just "truth" - it is important (from the authors point of view) essential part of truth, coated by nice "Pulser and starship" sugar.

But when we read "non-fiction books" about "evil dictators" (like Milosevich, Saddam, Ghadaffi or Putin) sending, just for lulz, the hordes of their brainwashed goons obsessed with the passion of a meaningless destruction and cruelty into "democratic lands", or something about "Anthropogenic Global Warming", it's not just lie or something that "didn't happened". It isn't even "realistic", even by the standards of the fiction literature.

And my book collection span a whole spectrum of subjects.
Such as?
 
Most of my books are in storage.

Ones kicking around me are -

(Not read pile as of yet)
Fyodor Dostoevsky
Crime and punishment
The Idiot
Poor folk and other stories

Paul Bloom - Against empathy
Jordan Peterson - 12 rules for life

(Read Pile)
David Keirsey - please understand me II
Paul Britton - The Jigsaw Man
Paul Britton - Picking up the pieces
Peter Faulk - Just one more thing
Neve's - The city and country purchaser (building methods published in 1703. Bought it for lime mortar mixes)
The law society - Conveyancing handbook
Daniel Goleman - EIQ
........

Just loads.

Digital Logic Gates and Flip Flops
The Marx Brothers
......

Just loads more to list, plus umpteen boxes full in storage.

1000005847.jpg


In fact, I'm going to build a large book shelf unit and get them all in one place. There's the full range of Nash Brickwork books somewhere, Dry Stone Walling, and a one on Einstein.

I just like to fill me head with 1 billion subjects.
 
I still read some on a Kindle, but mostly listen to audio books in the truck. This is a series that I started in the '70s, and it's really entertaining. It's like the Joe Pickett books, written not in sequence but still stand alone. The author is Brirish but really did some research for the series, and it pays off. Pure entertainment value. They're kind of old, but I may have some copies around if anyone is interested. Projekt Saucer Series by W.A. Harbinson

Can't use kindle, I look at screens enough already, between work and computer games.

I don't just read, I re-read books often.

Right now I am going through Turtledove's timeline 191 alt history of World War II.

For non-fiction, going through a book on the Battle of Tannenberg.
 
I read, but one thing that I have never done and most likely never will is do it through an audio recording. To me, if you learned to read in school, then read whatever you are wanting to know about. Don't get someone else to do the reading for you.

God bless you always!!!

Holly

P.S. Several of my family members who are no longer here never did learn to read when they were alive and so that is one reason why I have such a frame of mind on the subject.
 
I still read some on a Kindle, but mostly listen to audio books in the truck. This is a series that I started in the '70s, and it's really entertaining. It's like the Joe Pickett books, written not in sequence but still stand alone. The author is Brirish but really did some research for the series, and it pays off. Pure entertainment value. They're kind of old, but I may have some copies around if anyone is interested. Projekt Saucer Series by W.A. Harbinson
if you like dark fantasy check out the Blade Itself by Joe Ambercrombie .. its the grittiest fantasy series I've ever read .. a brutal example of dark fantasy ..
 
Most of my books are in storage.

Ones kicking around me are -

(Not read pile as of yet)
Fyodor Dostoevsky
Crime and punishment
The Idiot
Poor folk and other stories

Paul Bloom - Against empathy
Jordan Peterson - 12 rules for life

(Read Pile)
David Keirsey - please understand me II
Paul Britton - The Jigsaw Man
Paul Britton - Picking up the pieces
Peter Faulk - Just one more thing
Neve's - The city and country purchaser (building methods published in 1703. Bought it for lime mortar mixes)
The law society - Conveyancing handbook
Daniel Goleman - EIQ
........

Just loads.

Digital Logic Gates and Flip Flops
The Marx Brothers
......

Just loads more to list, plus umpteen boxes full in storage.

View attachment 1066617

In fact, I'm going to build a large book shelf unit and get them all in one place. There's the full range of Nash Brickwork books somewhere, Dry Stone Walling, and a one on Einstein.

I just like to fill me head with 1 billion subjects.
Dostoevsky is nice, but I'm not sure you can understand it correctly without knowing the context. It's like starting reading a thread from the middle - without its beginning and end. And yes, those books, in some way are about "things that did never happened".
 
Dostoevsky is nice, but I'm not sure you can understand it correctly without knowing the context. It's like starting reading a thread from the middle - without its beginning and end. And yes, those books, in some way are about "things that did never happened".
I asked family to get me those for birthdays and Christmas's because Dostoevsky is Jordan Peterson's favourite author. I did start on Poor Folk and Other Stories, but only got as far as about a dozen pages.

As for fiction, The Five You Meet In Heaven by Mitch Albom is a fantastic book, so I bought the DVD. I didn't realise it was done as a TV series and not a film. The DVD was crap.

Anyone into crime psychology, The Jigsaw Man is brilliant.

As for psychology, Please Understand Me II is brilliant.

Anyone in sales, Resistance is Useless is a good read. That's why I don't complain in shops!!
 
Zavulon I need to get through Against Empathy by Paul Bloom. His arguement is, Rational Compassion is the way forward, Empathy is overrated.
Nice book, but as for me, its too Protestantic, may be... As the Protestants declare "Sola Scriptura", but don't follow their own motto, same way, declaration "Only Rationality" doesn't work in real life. There could be hundreds of rational reasons "not to help", and if you didn't get rid of other emotions (like fear or greed) - you'll follow them, just rationalizing your own fears.
 
Im still working on a book of Baptist Political Theology.
When not studying that I read pulp fiction detective stories it helps me to understand the street lingo some here on the boards use :) Mostly I like the 19th, 18th century authors. I don't read off the computer or audio books I like regular books with a drink and snacks near by. Magazines, the out door type hunting ,fishing. I like a real newspaper to read on a sunday over breakfast .
 
I read and listen to audio. Audio can, of course, develop good auditory skills. I have listened to audio books on long trips. It's easy to listening while going down the highway with no one around. When I pulled in the city looking for my destination, I would turn off the sound to concentrate on directions.
 
I still read some on a Kindle, but mostly listen to audio books in the truck. This is a series that I started in the '70s, and it's really entertaining. It's like the Joe Pickett books, written not in sequence but still stand alone. The author is Brirish but really did some research for the series, and it pays off. Pure entertainment value. They're kind of old, but I may have some copies around if anyone is interested. Projekt Saucer Series by W.A. Harbinson
My father was a big reader. I'm a big reader. I've read thousands of books. More likely tens of thousands.

I resisted a Kindle for a long time. I liked the feel of a book in my hand. But I finally got a Kindle after hearing so many other readers rave about them. And I'll be darned, I was instantly hooked.

So I sent one to my dad, and I preloaded it with books I knew he would want to read, and he became a convert.

My youngest daughter has inherited the reading gene. She also likes the physical feel of a book. I got her a Kindle this past Christmas and she still hasn't used it. She reads at least one book a week.

A few years ago, I started listening to audiobooks and I am seriously hooked on them. I don't think I've picked up my Kindle since then.

The chief advantage of audiobooks is I can listen to the during my commuted, while I'm eating, and during all kinds of other activities not conducive to a book or Kindle.

I was trained to be a speed reader. I used to read 3 to 5 books a week. With audiobooks, I go through books at a much, much slower rate even though I increase the audio speed.

Because I have read so many books, fiction no longer holds much appeal for me. After a while, they are too similar. I have become a consumer of mostly non-fiction books now. History, especially. And a lot of books about economics.
 
I still read some on a Kindle, but mostly listen to audio books in the truck. This is a series that I started in the '70s, and it's really entertaining. It's like the Joe Pickett books, written not in sequence but still stand alone. The author is Brirish but really did some research for the series, and it pays off. Pure entertainment value. They're kind of old, but I may have some copies around if anyone is interested. Projekt Saucer Series by W.A. Harbinson
Everything hinges on the narrator of an audiobook. There are some really good ones, and some really horrible readers.

I've gotten refunds for some audiobooks. Half because the story sucked, half because the reader sucked.
 
Despite failing eyesight I still read many books of all genres. I recently discovered my local public library's large print book section, and it has been a real boon to me.
Most public libraries also have audiobooks.
 
The key to audio books (a misnomer as far as I'm concerned) is getting the unabridged version.

Sometimes having it read by the author is a plus as well.
 

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