Hunter Johnson — Reading List 2007
The Complete Robot, by Isaac Asimov. My younger son was frequently bored with the thoughtful robots, but I believe my older son enjoyed it.
"Farewell to Master", by Harry Bates. The short story that was the basis for The Day the Earth Stood Still.
Unceasing Worship, by Harold Best. We read this extraordinary work for a Sunday school "semester". Aimed at servants in the worship/music ministry, and presented with a college-level vocabulary, this work still has a lot to offer anyone interested in communal worship.The Hunt for Red October, Tom Clancy's debut novel. I've enjoyed the movie and I've read one of Clancy's other books, but never got around to reading this book that my wife's had forever. A taut story, worthy of its "unputdownable" label, given to it by Ronald Reagan.
Never Eat Along, by Keith Ferrazzi. A fun and enlightening read on networking and relationships. Best parts for me: not keeping score and forgetting "balance".Software Creativity 2.0, by Robert L. Glass. Lots of insight into the dilemma of free-wheeling vs. disciplined development processes. Some excess padding, but a good read for IT programmers, managers, and directors.
Made to Stick, by Chip Heath & Dan Heath. Another good business book; I never thought I'd read them, much less enjoy them. The warnings about the "Curse of Knowledge" really hit home. It's the mystery of the geek revealed."The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" by Washington Irving. A short story, not a book. Fun to read aloud.
Tombs, edited by Edward E. Kramer. Hit-and-miss story collection from White Wolf. The hits were worth slogging through the misses, though, and I got this off the deep discount rack at the local game store, so final tally is a win.Myths of Babylon and Assyria, by Donald A. Mackenzie. A choppy narrative of both the myths and ancient history of Babylon and Assyria, with comparisons and parallels drawn to Greek, Egyptian, Norse, Indian, and other mythologies as well as Egyptian and Hebrew history. I could do with smoother narration and less chop for an introductory text.
"The Necklace", by Guy de Maupassant. I read this aloud during the Christmas break; a good secondary moral about materialism that suited the season.Googlepedia, by Michael Miller. A handful of interesting pages surrounded by a too-basic instruction manual.
Black God's Kiss, by C. L. Moore. A collection of pulp-era fantasy stories, some of the first to feature a strong female protagonist. Purple prose abounds, but the rococo imagery works well here."The Edge of the Knife", by H. Beam Piper. A "pre-story" for his Terro-Human Future History stories.
"Never Bet the Devil Your Head", by Edgar Allan Poe. A read-aloud one-shot after dinner. The kids smirked whenever the character Dammit was mentioned by name, but Lori and I enjoyed Poe's wordcraft.Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, by J. K. Rowling. The more I read about competitive magic-based events in the Potterverse, the tighter I have to hold my nose. This entry seems to be the weakest of the series so far.
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, by J. K. Rowling. ... and as soon as I complain about competitive magic, this installment is raised with almost no Quidditch or other such. Possibly the first in the series which is as good as the first.Randal Schwartz's Perls of Wisdom. A collection of Perl columns by Randal Schwartz, and excellent examples. I was, however, frustrated by the columns that described the whys and wherefores of the code, then presented a code listing a few pages later. Making the explanations comments in the code would have helped a lot.
War and Peace, by Leo Tolstoy. A Great Book, but not as good as Moby Dick. I found myself identifying most with Pierre, so my final impression was that the book was about him in particular, but I get the feeling a second read (if I were ever to attempt it) would shake that. Favorite quote: "By loving people without cause he discovered indubitable causes for loving them." Next up: see if the library has the movie with Audrey Hepburn.Bushwhackers: The Civil War in North Carolina - The Mountains by William R. Trotter. The middle volume of a non-fiction trilogy, it stands perfectly well on its own. An excellent look at the personal effects of the American Civil War.
Slaughterhouse-Five, by Kurt Vonnegut. An on-the-airplane book for me. A wry look at war and life and death, with some time travel thrown in. Truly excellent.The Island of Doctor Moreau, by H. G. Wells. Movie versions of novels often pale in comparison, but I think the classic science fiction novels suffer more in the conversion than other genres. Great ideas, great writing.
Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Omnibus Volume 1, by Joss Whedon et al. I credit Joss Whedon (creator of the Buffyverse), but he didn't write anything here directly. This collection of Dark Horse comic books includes their adaptation of Whedon's original script for the film, the film whose execution he has had plenty of issues with. Fun fanboy stuff, although I could have done without the Spike & Dru opener, and I sniff at the decision to incorporate Dawn into what should be pre-Dawn stories.The Mafulu: Mountain People of British New Guinea, by Robert W. Williamson. A random download from Gutenberg. I particularly enjoyed the sections on their language and festival rites.
Praying with the KGB, by Philip Yancey. I re-read this one during a couple of my son's soccer practices. Very short book, and "contemporary issues" instead of "religion", but the changes in Russia in the past 15 years cast a new light on some of the sections.Musashi, by Eiji Yoshikawa. The Gone With the Wind of Japan, according to Edwin O. Reischauer. I had read a fifth of the book in paperback years ago (the 970-page hardcover was published as five paperbacks). It's an amazing look into daily life in seventeenth-century Japan as well as a fictionalized biography of a legendary samurai. Favorite quote: "Now that his years of training have yielded such spectacular results, everybody's talking about his 'god-given talent.' That's how men who don't try very hard comfort themselves." We also watched the 1950s' trilogy starring Toshiro Mifune after I read this.
Thérèse Raquin, by Émile Zola. My PDA book after Doctor Moreau, which made an interesting transition from beasts-as-people to people-as-beasts. Or "The Tell-Tale Heart" as a novel.
Past Reading Lists: 2006 | 2005
Hunter Johnson (hunter@hunterandlori.com)
