I've finally realized that it's completely futile for me to write some book reviews on books I've read a long time ago. So, I'm just going to add reviews to books that I read now and from here on.

But first, here is simply a (short) list of books I thought were really good:

• Asimov's foundation series (sci-fi)
• Any Asimov Robot book... especailly "I, Robot" (sci-fi)
• "The Weathly Barber" by David Chilton (personal finance)
• "Black Holes & Time Warps" by Kip Thorne (cosmology for average person)
• "Surely, you must be joking" by Richard Feynman (autobio/stories about/by Feynman)
• "Dumbing Down Our Kids" by Charles Sykes (problems with the American public education system)
• "The Crystal Cave" by Mary Stewart (fantasy/Merlin)
• "The Hollow Hills" by Mary Stewart (follows "The Crystal Cave")
• "Starship Troopers" by Robert Heinlein (sci-fi. Yes, the book.)
• "Who Got Einstein's Office?" by Ed Regis (science history -- about the Institute for Advanced Study)

And here's what's in the queue...

• Networking by Example
• The Blind Assassin by Margaret Atwood
• Silicon Sky by Gary Dorsey
• Castles: Their Construction & History by Sidney Toy
• ???

And lastly, if anyone wants to ever buy me a book, check out my Wish List at amazon.com. :)

"Interpreter of Maladies" by

Read this for the book club I'm invovled in. Great book.

"Ring" by Stephen Baxter

A thoroughly enjoyable science fiction novel. I enjoy reading sci-fi by other scientists/physicists. Baxter did a great job of discussing the life cycle processes within stars and some other cosmology topics and working them into a story. However, this book isn't for the faint of heart... it actually gets pretty depressing towards the end when the reality of the end of humankind and indeed our entire Unvierse is at hand. Baxter really put the non-importance of our individual existence into perspective. I didn't sleep well for several nights because of it.

"I am Spock" by Leonard Nimoy

I never read "I am not Spock" which Nimoy wrote back in the mid-70's. This newer book is in part an apology for the first one. It's also the first biography I've ever read by one of the Star Trek actors. I wasn't expecting to like it... I'm the type that just wants to enjoy these folks as their ST characters, and not worry about who they are in real life. As a consequence, I never realized what an extensive career Nimoy has had. He's talented and he's been very lucky. He also comes across as a very thoughtful and compassionate person in the book. It was nice to read about his perspective of the series and the movies... from the man who made Spock what he is.