Heart of Darkness - Joseph Conrad (4 of 5 Restless Cannibals)

I do not make a habit of reading books more than once. Exceptions occur in the following cases:

1. I have to read the book for two different classes (Heart of Darkness)
2. I forget I already read the book (The Time Machine)
3. Religious study (Book of Mormon)

I was surprised that I enjoyed this book more than the first run through the jungle back in my 11th grade English class. This might be due to improved reading skills. It might also be a superior instructor. It could just be a short-lived fascination with cannibalism. Go fish.

Yes, it is a lot to slosh through, but the text does contain some powerful descriptions of the African continent during the time of European occupation. I believe this classic novel is worth your time if you haven't already read it.

Have you returned to any books lately to discover that you either liked or disliked them more than the first read?

Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier

One of my good friends recommended this book to me and then added to her recommendation by actually giving me a copy. I finally got a chance to read it on my flight home from New York and it proved to be a very fast read and an engrossing story.

Rebecca is the mysterious story of a young woman who is swept off her feet, marries quickly, and settles at the English estate of Manderly as the second wife to a wealthy landowner. Once arriving, however, she finds herself constantly questioning her place in reference to the first wife--Rebecca. Who Rebecca was, how she was viewed by the servants and the neighbors, how she was loved by Maxim himself...all of these questions begin to drive the heroine quite mad (...but not literally). How the story all turns out? Well that's what the reading is all about.

Overall I enjoyed the book. The author is very skilled at keeping the reader interested. At the moment when I started getting a little bored of the storyline, BAM! she threw a million "answers" at me and a million more questions as well. I literally read this entire book in one sitting, and I think its an entertaining enough read to recommend it.

B+

Terrorism: The New World Disorder - Nicholas Fotion (4 of 5 Just Causes)

I came across this book while doing research for my DC internship paper. In the end, I don't think I'm going to use the terrorism angle anymore, but the book was interesting enough to push through.

The book begins with a philosophical analysis of reasons for starting a terrorism campaign vs. reasons for continuing it. It covers the advantages and disadvantages of terrorism, as well as actor types, motives and objectives.

Most of the book is a description of the history of terrorism. The goal of the author is to show that terrorism is nothing new. It goes back many decades if not centuries. The form may change a bit over time, but the underlying theme is the same. The final chapter predicts that terrorism will continue to be a prominent world issue for many years to come.

The World We Have - Thich Nhat Hanh (3.5 of 5 No Car Days)

I read this book a few months ago for my Environmental Literature class. It's a tiny little handbook that can probably fit in your pocket and because it's only about 100 pages, you could likely get through it in one sitting.

Short and sweet: it's a Buddhist approach to conserving the world we have. Most of the book focuses on the Buddhist ideology for protecting nature. The last chapter contains many simple habits that you can put into practice to make a difference in your home, family and community. If this angle to the green revolution sounds interesting to you, check it out. The worst case scenario is you lose an hour or two.

Buffettology - Mary Buffett (4.5 of 5 Shares of Gillette)

Mary Buffett was married to one of Warren's sons for a time before filing for divorce. During her stay in the Warren compound she had the opportunity to see the inner workings of the Oracle of Omaha's investing strategy. In this book she outlines the core Buffet investing strategies.

The underlying theme of Buffet's time-tested strategy is value investing in bear markets. When the indexes hit bottom, you dump your money into companies that have been around for many years and aren't going anywhere. They make products that consumers will always buy and have to buy often. The best way to find these companies is by walking into any local grocery store. There you'll find names like Johnson and Johnson, Mars, Gillette, etc. Their stock prices will be down because of the overall market but they will surely rise during the economic recovery.

There is also an interesting section of the book that discusses arbitrage. This is essentially looking for rumors of potential buyout situations. When a company agrees to buy another, it will establish a buyout price per share for all available shares. Your profit will be the difference between the current share price and the buyout price. This strategy is difficult and more risky than the first. It is hard to find these buyout deals before the crowd does, and the agreements often don't go through in the end. The buyout offers do however create a great deal of volatility that day traders can exploit.

What Matters: The World's Preeminent Photojournalists and Thinkers Depict Essential Issues of Our Time - David Cohen (4.5 of 5 Gold-plated Handbags)

I found this book at the library while doing research for my internship paper on malaria. Twenty to thirty key issues are covered ranging from atrocities in Sudan to rampant consumerism in the United States. Many of the full-page photos are absolutely stunning. The combination of these images with an engaging text make this book a powerful experience.

This book has generated several interesting conversations in the month or so that it has been sitting on our kitchen table. The poignant images quickly draw any passerby into the book. The chapters are largely self-contained allowing a reader to become familiar with an issue in one sitting. I would usually go through one or two chapters while eating my morning raisin bran.
The controversial nature of the topics often prompted me to talk them over with my roommates.

At the very end of the book there is a short chapter that outlines additional resources for each topic covered. There is also information about how readers can participate, donate, serve in each area.

Tarzan of the Apes - Edgar Rice Burrows (3.5 of 5 Bulging Biceps)

This is another of the books from my Darwin class this past semester. I had not read the book previously, but I had seen several theatrical versions of the Tarzan story. I feel that these other versions in someways made my reading of the book more difficult. I kept having to tell myself that the book was the original work and that the movies were the copies.

For those curious about going back to the roots of the Tarzan story, you'll most likely enjoy your experience. I was surprised to discover that it was the first novel in a series of 40 or so books. Move over James Bond. If you want to enjoy it as fiction, it's a quick enjoyable read. If you want to dig a little bit more, there is a deeper commentary here about human nature. Burrows believed that the epitome of mankind combined modern intelligence and technology with primeval strength and agility. Time and time again this belief is portrayed by Burrows in Tarzan's actions.

If you think you can read the book without hearing Phil Collins echoing in the back of your mind, I say go for it.