Some Books I have Read & Would Recommend

ravi · **Hail the resurrection! -** 22-01-2003, 02:03 PM

Hi guys.
Thanks to drugballad 4 resurrecting this ! I had really wanted 2 c this thread again. But the link 2 the discussion on "Zen and ...." reminds me that a lot of people who had been active back then have dropped out - guru is one.
And i have a few recos too.
1. "The nudist on the late shift" by Po Bronson - Real stories from silicon valley including a whole damn chapter on our own whiz kid of the net boom - Sabeer Bhatia and how he started hotmail.
2. "The new new thing " by Michael Lewis - Yeah. this is the same guy who wrote "Liar's Poker" and this is all about Netscape and its founder Jim Clark. Both this and the Nudist are amazing books with the sort of insider's view they give u on silicon valley.
3. "Eat the Rich" by P.J O'Rourke (if i remember the name right) - Really amazing book which answers a lot of the Qns any layman would ask abt Economics. Amazing for the readability and entertainment value it dishes out along with lots of good info.
Will add to this list when i remeber more

Ravi

Coldfusion · 22-01-2003, 02:30 PM

Yup Allwin,

Great Thread!!

Quote:

I've heard that LILA is much better written and the philosophical talk is much more down to earth. Let me know more.

You are right there!! LILA is much more digestible

. Zen does take some time and effort to decipher, and you can still not understand where he is going

with it. I read them some 3-4 years back and don't really remember the nitty-gritty. But ya... If you liked Zen you'll definitely like LILA.

Got a lot of input now!! If only I can find the time to read them.

ashwin · 22-01-2003, 02:39 PM

Quote:

You are right there!! LILA is much more digestible

Really? Ok. Because my Lila bookmark is still at around page 50 haven't got beyond that. Now I think I might get on with the book....

A very pertinent question, me and a friend were wondering about this: Is it pronounced "Lie-la" or "Lee-la" ??

**pagalguy** · 22-01-2003, 02:49 PM

Quote:

A very pertinent question, me and a friend were wondering about this: Is it pronounced "Lie-la" or "Lee-la" ??

Oh neither.. Its LIL-Ah

ashwin · 22-01-2003, 05:27 PM

LOVE IN THE TIME OF CHOLERA: GABRIEL GARCIA MARQUEZ

This was my first Marquez book so I wasn't too sure what to expect. It's set somewhere around early 19th century in the Caribbean, the way he's conveyed the setting is pretty impressive. there are a few parts in the book that are so amazingly well written and emotive that you wanna read them again. (if anyone's read it, there's this episode of them fighting over toilet soap: i thought that was beautifully written) but the downside, atleast for me, was that I ended up reading the book simply to get to these parts. And there aren't as many of these parts as I hoped there would be. Overall, it was an average read; I wanted to read Marquez so I did. "one Hundred years of solitude" is of course his most famous work, I haven't read that yet, anyone here who has?

Coldfusion · 22-01-2003, 05:40 PM

Well Ashwin, when you mentioned the Caribbean, what struck me straightaway was Ernest Hemingway and his Old Man and the Sea. I read that twice in one shot

. One of the best of the genre i've read. The struggle the old man had with the sharks was well written, yet gripped you more than any of the so-called thrillers I've read.

Quote:

so amazingly well written and emotive that you wanna read them again

I had a hard time finding books last time, I went to the library. It looks like I'll find it hard to decide now

shubham · 22-01-2003, 05:45 PM

read "archangel" by robert harris..excellent

ashwin · 22-01-2003, 05:53 PM

Quote:

Ernest Hemingway and his Old Man and the Sea. I read that twice in one shot . One of the best of the genre i've read.

Ok next in line!

**pagalguy** · 23-01-2003, 01:10 AM

I just finished Ayn Rand's "The FountainHead" for the second time a couple of days ago. It had been a couple of years since I read it first. It ranks right up there with the best. I guess it just never ages. Surprising since it was written in the 1940s and still is so eminently readable.

From good literature to simple all out fun - Read - The Inscrutable Americans - Anurag Mathur. Simply hilarious. The travails of an Indian Bhai in the US for further studies. A Hinglish Book. But funny as hell.

To Kill a Mocking Bird - Harper Lee - Again a best seller. A great read. The story from the perspective of a kid, is simply awesome.

Happy Reading

drugballad · 23-01-2003, 01:08 PM

heylo ppl...
i just finished The Dilbert Principle by Scott Adams..guyz...its simply hillarious.
a must read i guess.....he talks abt the basic, normal , day-to-day fundas that happen in the corporate world in a very witty but smart manner...
i am sure u will laugh ur butt off!!!