Reading List

Reading is enjoyable.

I used to believe everyone reads.  When I found out some people don't, it was a shock.  I won't pretend that I understand.  Life without reading is unimaginable to me.  

I love to escape into different worlds.  I love the challenge of difficult ideas.  And, I love both the feel of paper and the glow of a tablet.     

My Book List 

Tier One Books - Those books which I can read over and over.

1. Any Series by L. E.  Modisett jr.
2. Neverwhere - Neil Gaimen
3. The Hobbit - Tolkien
4. The lord of the Rings Trilogy - Tolkien
5. Dune Trilogy - Frank Herbert
6. Childhood's End - Arthur C. Clarke
7. The Fountains of Paradise - Arthur C. Clarke

Tier Two Books - I read, but it takes longer to recharge.

1.  My Name is Asher Lev - Chaim Potok [Story of an artist rejected by family.]
2. Anything by Edgar Allen Poe - [His prose fascinates me.  It's really long sentences.  He makes it work.]
3. Alice in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass  - Lewis Carol  [
4. The works of HP Lovecraft - [The author and the subjects are disturbing, and I can't take him in large amounts.  Still, his insights into the darker realms of the soul are intriguing.]
5. On the Decay of the Art of Lying - Mark Twain [Yes, I have read his famous works.  This is the one on my Kindle list.]

Tier Three Books - Challenging Reading

1. King James Bible - [I was raised in an Assembly of God Church, and have been reading this for most of my life.   The challenge here is to separate what I have been reading from what I have been told.  It's amazing how little support for certain church doctrines exist in the word.  Also, whether you believe in God or you don't, there are some worthwhile concepts in there.]
2.  The Wealth of Nations- Adam Smith [Why this book was not required reading at any level of education is beyond me. ]
3. Capitalism - Ann Rand [I don't care what the extreme leftists say, she was not a Facist in any sense.   What she was, I'm still working out.]
4. The Art of War - Sun Tzu [English Translation.  It's been off and on for me since the 1980's.  Everyone was reading it then; but, people cherry pick concepts out of it.  Think of it as a handbook for bureaucrats rather than soldiers.] 
5. Moby Dick: The White Whale - Herman Melville.  [It's one of those books that you uncover more with each read.  There is a surprising amount of painting references in the book.]

Tier Four Books - Artist Biographies, Art criticisms, and Reference Books - Useful but not fun.

1. Biographies - Generally, these focus of an artists life, while interesting, I find them difficult to read twice.   
2. Art Critics - I have given up on this group.  It's better to paint and let critics do whatever it is they do.
3. Reference Books - Memory aides for techniques that are not used a lot, or to gain an understanding of art in another era.