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Non-fiction book recommendation

Meclizine

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Meclizine
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Aug 9, 2006
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I'm going on vacation in about a week. It's a family reunion type thing.

Anyway, it will probably be stretches of boredom punctuated by mildly fun activities. So, I'm looking for a book to read. I'm interested in religion from a psychological/evolutionary standpoint. Evolution, too. I'm not looking for something too heavy, having no formal education on either of those subjects.

I'll ultimately end up browsing if I don't get any recommendations.

By the way, as far as I know, most of the people that will be there are mormons. I'm not looking to stir up controversy or conflict, but I'm not afraid of them knowing where I stand. Thanks. :)
 
Feynman, Sagan, Gould, C.P. Snow... Try The Gospel According to the Simpsons by Mark Pinsky & The Simpsons and Philosophy, anthology.These are not joke books. Both books are accessible and can be read in segments. Also, you may be able to draw your relatives into a meaningful, (at least for a family reunion),conversation. Check your library and used book store first.
 
If you are at all familiar with Terry Pratchett's Disc World stories I would recommend "The Science Of The Discworld" books. By TP Ian Stewart and Jack Cohen.
Light hearted well written popular science interspersed with Terry Pratchett's inimitable fiction.
 
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Brainache said:
If you are at all familiar with Terry Pratchett's Disc World stories I would recommend "The Science Of The Discworld" books. By TP Ian Stewart and Jack Cohen.
Light hearted well written popular science interspersed with Terry Pratchett's inimitable fiction.
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Definitely agree with that; also try one of the books in the series of 'Bluffers' Guides'.
 
WW2dude said:
I'm going on vacation in about a week. It's a family reunion type thing.

I'm looking for a book to read. I'm interested in religion from a psychological/evolutionary standpoint. Evolution, too. I'm not looking for something too heavy, having no formal education on either of those subjects.
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How about "Varieties of Religious Experiences" by William James? It's about sudden insight that you are one with the Universe and have a spark of the divine in you.

On the other side of the scale, there's The "Holographic Universe" by Michael Talbot, which explains how people develop stigmata, etc.

There are also some interesting books by Robert Monroe, who believes in thought forms, that you create your situation.

What about Shirley MacLaine's books on psychic phenomenon? "Out on a Limb," for example.

kc440
 
Thanks for the replies!

It turns out I'm probably not going. I'm still going to check out those books, though, because I really want to read up on these subjects.

And I welcome any more suggestions.
 
A Short History of Nearly Everything, Bill Bryson - good one-volume book on science for the layman, including evolution. Can't say enough good things about it.
 
Polaris said:
A Short History of Nearly Everything, Bill Bryson - good one-volume book on science for the layman, including evolution. Can't say enough good things about it.
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Agree absolutely.

His latest, which I think is called 'The thunderbolt Kid' is being read on Radio 4 and I'm just waiting for my copy to come into our local bookshop.
 
Any of Paul Theroux's travel books, especially The Great Railway Bazaar and The Old Patagonian Express.
 
Guests of the Ayatollah very interesting inside look at the Terahn hostage crisis at the US Embassy, told from both sides.
 
Back to the Basics?

WW2dude said:
I'm going on vacation in about a week. It's a family reunion type thing.

Anyway, it will probably be stretches of boredom punctuated by mildly fun activities. So, I'm looking for a book to read. I'm interested in religion from a psychological/evolutionary standpoint. Evolution, too. I'm not looking for something too heavy, having no formal education on either of those subjects.

I'll ultimately end up browsing if I don't get any recommendations.

By the way, as far as I know, most of the people that will be there are mormons. I'm not looking to stir up controversy or conflict, but I'm not afraid of them knowing where I stand. Thanks. :)
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You might try Origin of Species by Darwin. It's a bit of a hard read since he tends to present so much that is obvious (to us in this century anyway). It is interesting to see his thought processes and, one of the big advantages :) is that you can then ask any creationist you meet, "Well, have you read Origin of Species?" without being a hypocrite!

I got a remaindered copy for a couple of bucks (CDN) and it is also available online through Project Gutenberg at:
http://www.gutenberg.org/etext/2009
 
Sagan's Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors was a really enjoyable look at evolution, though it's somewhat out of date by now, and not his feild, it's hard to find a more inspiring science writer.

Dawkins' River out of Eden was wonderful. Somewhat short, and very accessible, it was the first of his books that I read, and I was hooked from the first page. (I picked it up off a display at chapters and sat down and read it front to back right there. Then I proceeded to read everything else he wrote).

I just read Peacemaking Among Primates, Frans De Wahl's wonderful look at the social life of our close cousins, and how they are poorly represented by those who look at agression without looking at it's counterpart - reconciliation. Probably a hard book to find, though.

For something fun, why not try Jared Diamond's Why Sex is Fun (or is it Why is Sex Fun?, I don't remember) or slightly more serious and in depth The Third Chimpanzee.

Anything by E.O. Wilson is wonderful, particularly The Diversity of Life, but while I love his books, I find his writing a little heavy at times (though when you get into it, it's thrilling).

Right now I'm re-reading Dawkins' The Ancestor's Tale, which, while pretty heavy, is probably my all time favourite book. I learned more from this book than from any two others I've read, and forgot more.
 
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Mating Mind by Geofrey Miller, sexually selection in evolution

End of Faith by Sam Harris is also good
 
Roboramma said:
Right now I'm re-reading Dawkins' The Ancestor's Tale, which, while pretty heavy, is probably my all time favourite book. I learned more from this book than from any two others I've read, and forgot more.
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I'll ditto that. I just read this about 4 weeks ago. There's a lot of amazing things told in here. The one that still sticks in my head is the african horsefly that pupates in ponds that usually turn dry during drought seasons. Before going into pupa stage, the horsefly larva first creates 2 cork-screw like holes and then creates a 3rd hole between the other 2, in which it uses to pupate in. The reason biologist figure, is that when the pond dries up, the mud becomes dry and brittle. As mud dries, it cracks. A crack directly through the hole the horsefly pupates in would be fatal. One of the 2 cork-screw like holes would absorb the cracks. Pretty amazing (if true).

Charlie (real life more interesting than woo life) Monoxide
 
I'm reading "The Dark Valley: A Panorama of the 1930s" by Piers Brendon. THAT's a good book. You might also look at Collapse by Jared Diamond; fascinating book.
 
Orwell's 1984 - some argue that it's modern history ...

Seriously though I've been reading a lot of history lately and judging by your username I'd recommend:
Gibbon's Decline and Fall
The Pellopennesian War - Thucydides
Rifles - Mark Urban
Wealth of Nations...
 
Okay, so it's not evolution or religion, but I have to plug E.T. Bell's "Men of Mathematics". I've been told that Bell's book is not always the most factually accurate, but it is easily one of the most entertainingly written non-fiction books in the English language. Each chapter is devoted to one or two mathematicians. They can be read in any order as well.

I'll post excerpts of Bell's writing if I have time.
 
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