So... what are you reading?

[Cavalry Scout]

'Douglas Haig and the First World War' by J. P. Harris.

[EagleJCS]

Finished The Black Dwarf. Now starting Wilson's Tales of the Borders and of Scotland Vol 2.

[Dughlas mor]

"Lamentation," by C.J. Sansom. The 6th in the series of Matthew Shardlake mysteries, set in the reign of Henry VIII, recommended a few pages back in this thread. Very well written mysteries, and the author brings this period of history in England to life in vivid detail.

[Mike_Oettle]

I will probably post a comprehensive list of my recent reading in the near future, but through an unexpected turn of good fortune I was able to acquire four volumes on heraldry at the weekend and am now busy with The Oxford Guide to Heraldry by Thomas Woodcock, Somerset Herald, and John Martin Robinson, Maltravers Herald Extraordinary.
Together with that volume (a paperback) I also acquired a Debrett guide to heraldry and regalia and two books in German, one of them being divided into two parts, the first dealing with family research and the second with heraldry. The second is a small volume published in the 1930s during the Nazi era, and contains a great many illustrations of German coats of arms and other devices.

[Tarheel]

The wife suggests I read two of her books. They are James Thurber's, "Fables for our Times" and "92 stories".

It seems she thinks my attempts at humor need help from the aforementioned texts. I'm not upset, sketches accompany the stories and buffer her observations of me.

[jebrooks76]

Just finished Alas, Babylon by Pat Frank. Next will be a book loosely based on it, ALAS LAS VEGAS by Susan Gregersen and Rebecca Reynolds. And also starting the FOXFIRE Series of books. I will have to say I am pretty excited the local library had the series for checkout. But after skimming through the first one I will be purchasing the series. A lot of great information that can be lost forever if not passed on.

[Tarheel]

... starting the FOXFIRE Series of books.

I also love this series. Kenny Runion (highlighted in several books) is one of my heroes.

[OC Richard]

I have just finished re-reading, "The Man Who Never Was", by Lt. Cmdr. Ewen Montague. A fascinating true account of a successful British counter intelligence opperation just before the Allied invasion of Sicily.

That's a great book! Thanks for bringing it to attention.

I read a fascinating book about Mosquito raids in WWII. Can't remember the title or author.

Then there's The Eagle Has Landed.

Possibly the best WWII book I've read was one few people seem to know of: The Forgotten Soldier by Guy Sajer. It's the autobiography (almost a diary) of a Frenchman who was inducted into the German Army and sent to the Russian front. It really needs to be made into a movie.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Forgotten_Soldier

Anyhow I'm working through two books by Jared Diamond:

Guns, Germs, and Steel

The Third Chimpanzee

This guy thinks outside the box, no doubt. Fascinating stuff.

BTW on a recent airplane flight I caught most of In The Heart Of The Sea. Don't let the rather bland movie fool you: the book is one of the most gripping, page-turning, horrifying things I've ever read (yes up there with Helter Skelter).

[Walkman]

I'm currently reading: "The Horse, the Wheel and Language: How Bronze-Age Riders from the Eurasian Steppes Shaped the Modern World", by David W. Anthony.

[OC Richard]

"The Horse, the Wheel and Language: How Bronze-Age Riders from the Eurasian Steppes Shaped the Modern World", by David W. Anthony.

The Marija Gimbutas "Kurgan" theory?

"The problem of Indo-European origins" is very tricky, with much evidence on both sides. I go with the Colin Renfrew side, the language of first farmers replacing that of hunter-gatherers, as it has done in so many other parts of the world.