The Name of the Rose (Everyman's Library (Cloth))276 reviews Umberto Eco Everyman's Library, 2006 Gripping mystery telling a story of religious life in another century + one of my top 5 books of all time + Excellent It's a fabulous WHODUNIT!! The characters come alive with the author's fascinating description of physical characteristics, his telling from whence each person came to this abbey, and through personality traits. The reader feels like he is meeting each of them in real life. The book starts out ...             Life of Pi1841 reviews Yann Martel Canongate Books Ltd, 2003 no words can describe how good this is! + engaging, imaginative, thought-provoking it breaks down all barriers of imagination and offers a breathtaking understanding of life through a story of simple transition from innocence to maturity...something each adult reader can relate to. be prepared for the more graphic details in the second and third section of the book which are a ...             A Dirty Job: A Novel57 reviews Christopher Moore HarperCollins, 2007 Someone has to do it + A Riot! + Best book I've read in a long time + Born-again Reader             Labyrinths: Selected Stories & Other Writings (New Directions Paperbook)40 reviews Jorge Luis Borges New Directions, 2007 Writings of a great reader + Rod Sterling on Steroids + Mystical, cosmopolitan, multi-layered In "How To Read a Book" Mortimer J. Adler and Charles Van Doren describe the fourth level of reading. Synoptical reading challenges the reader who, having carefully and thoroughly understood several individual works, strives to hear the conversation of their ensemble. "Labyrinths" brings us the ...             Secrets of the Temple: How the Federal Reserve Runs the Country43 reviews William Greider Simon & Schuster, 1989 The Hobo Philosopher + Very informative but too detailed + How the Fed ruins the Country "Secrets of the Temple" is a book that discusses the interaction of the Federal Reserve and Government economic policy. This book is basically a detailed analysis of the Reagan administration and the Volcker chairmanship of the Reserve. Once again Mr. Greider teaches us how the "clock" works by ...             What Is the What (Vintage)166 reviews Dave Eggers Vintage, 2007 What was the What? + What is What is the What + Heartbreaking and uplifting + a must read + Incredibly Moving             A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius916 reviews Dave Eggers Vintage, 2001 A dizzying book + I really liked it, but it's not for everyone - 4 1/2 + A.H.B.W.O.S.G. Review + The Work of A Staggering Genius             Freakonomics [Revised and Expanded]: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything1581 reviews Stephen J. Dubner William Morrow, 2006 A much-appreciated gift + Sociology-flavored econ + Enlightened I purchased this book as a gift for my fiance. He really enjoyed and appreciated it. Now it's my turn to read it!             Foucault's Pendulum395 reviews Umberto Eco Harvest Books, 2007 I can add little to the other wonderful reviews + Loved it! (The second time around.) Okay, this WAS a hard book to read. So much going on and so many references to cults and phenomina. Reading this book is more of an education than an entertainment. But what fun! Eco is a true literary genius, in the same class as his italian brethren of musical fame. Baudolino is perhaps ...             The Picture of Dorian Gray (Barnes & Noble Classics Series) (Barnes & Noble Classics)260 reviews Oscar Wilde Barnes & Noble Classics, 2003 The books that the world calls immoral are books that show the world its own shame + "Every portrait that is painted with feeling is a portrait of the artist, not of the sitter"-Oscar Wilde + Further reading Wilde sees the world more clearly than any writer of fiction in the last century. It is for that reason that his work is so filled with countless paradoxes and contradictions that challenge the mind and titillate the senses. Wilde lived in an infinitely ironic age, when society had grown so ...             Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies1075 reviews Jared Diamond W. W. Norton, 2005 A profound and lasting classic + History; It's What's for Dinner + Fascinating! + Great subject and treatment - shakey science             Macunaima (Literatura)2 reviews Mario de Andrade Coleccion Archivos, 1996 A landmark in Brazilian contemporary literature + Amazing and Nuts Mario de Andrade - writer, folklorist, musician, poet - published "Macunaíma, the hero with no character" in the 20s. It's a fantastic trip throughout Brazilian culture, music, ethnic origins, geography, folklore, all sewed together in the delicious adventures of the ultimate Brazilian, ...             Kingdom of Fear: Loathsome Secrets of a Star-Crossed Child in the Final Days of the American Century51 reviews Hunter S. Thompson Simon & Schuster, 2003 Significantly Better Than "Hey Rube" + The "Gonzo" King Near the End + The best collection + Some of his best work ever!             Blindness (Harvest Book)363 reviews Jose Saramago Harvest Books, 1999 Book In Perfect Condition With Prompt Delivery + the white sickness + Very strong and disturbing story I was very satisfied with my purchase of this book because it was in perfect condition and it was delivered in a prompt manner.             Why I Am Not a Christian and Other Essays on Religion and Related Subjects158 reviews Bertrand Russell Touchstone, 1967 Dogma or Progress? + A must read + Relevant Today + Stimulus + This and Ibn Warraq             Before Night Falls: A Memoir42 reviews Reinaldo Arenas Penguin (Non-Classics), 1994 Cuba Libre! + Beutiful, Glorious + A life of rebellion at the intersection of sex and literature + it aint pretty + real people with dirt on their feet             Middlesex: A Novel854 reviews Jeffrey Eugenides Picador, 2002 You Are Such a Flirt + One of my favorites! + A Wonderfuf Read + From a pediatric Urology Nurse's view point, well done             When Corruption Was King: How I Helped the Mob Rule Chicago, Then Brought the Outfit Down20 reviews Robert Cooley, Hillel Levin Carroll & Graf, 2006 when corruption was king + A Blast + An Ugly Business: Naming Names + What's Next?             The Pillars of the Earth1300 reviews Ken Follett NAL Trade, 2002 Great choice by Oprah + A must read + Simply Brilliant + A page-turner about cathedral construction? YES!             Narcissus and Goldmund: A Novel9 reviews Hermann Hesse Picador, 2003 Hesse's Master Work + Beautiful, profound, important + A psychological Jungian Bildungsroman disguised as a fairy tale + There are not eonough stars in the galaxy to rate this book + Perhaps Hesse's greatest novel. It's certainly my favorite.