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Re: Non-Fiction survey Vodalus Send a noteboard - 15/09/2009 01:07:13 AM
1. Do you read non-fiction on a regular basis? If so, what do you typically read?


Yes. 10 of the 26 books I've read so far this year are non-fiction works. I guess most of them come from the Current Affairs section of the bookstore.

2. Do you enjoy (whether you have read it recently or not) any of the following categories of books?

- history


Yes.

- biography


Once in a while.

- religion


Yes.

- world cultures


Yes. Latest one being Persian.

- science and mathematics


A whole lot when I was younger. Now, very little, but Michio Kaku's Physics of the Impossible is in the queue.

- political theory


YeaaaaNo. Kinda.

- philosophy


In my early to mid-twenties.

- art and architecture (including film and TV)


Art, no. Architecture, sometimes.

- psychology


No.

- literary criticism


If it covers an author I like, yes.

3. What is your favorite work of non-fiction (please exclude religious/devotional works from this question)?


Ever? I'd have to think about that for a while. My favorite for this year is Destiny Disrupted: A History of the World Through Islamic Eyes by Tamim Ansary. From last year I'd have to say Kishore Mahbubani's The New Asian Hemisphere: The Irresistible Shift of Power to the East.

4. Would you be interested in reviews of non-fiction books on this site?


Yes. I actually went to B&N to pick up that Fisk book you reviewed, but the lone copy they had was in poor shape. Instead, I picked up Engaging the Muslim World by Juan Cole.

5. Have you read any non-fiction book recently that was terrible? If so, what?


If last year is recent enough, yes. It was Marco Polo's The Travels. It was half boring travelogue and half shopping list. I gave up on it about half-way through.

6. Was there a non-fiction book that you read that changed the way you thought or felt about world issues (again, please exclude religious and devotional works from this question) ?


Crap! A stock answer won't work here. And a real answer would demand some contemplataion on my part.

7. Do you consider books about the occult to be non-fiction or fiction? Why?


That would depend on the angle from which the subject is approached.

8. In your personal library at home, what percentage of your books are non-fiction?


Roughly 50% non-fiction, 25% literature, and 25% SFF. I know this because Larry once did a survey which had some questions about personal libraries.

That's it...for now.
南無阿弥陀仏!
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Non-Fiction survey Tom - 14/09/2009 05:38:04 PM 1249 Views
Heh. jh - 14/09/2009 05:58:59 PM 966 Views
You associate non-fiction with work? Are you a non-fiction book reviewer by day? Tom - 14/09/2009 06:35:59 PM 795 Views
Nah... jh - 14/09/2009 06:56:41 PM 811 Views
I like non-fiction as long as it's not preachy. Darth_Katie - 14/09/2009 06:25:42 PM 992 Views
So...Bill O'Reilly's out but Aleister Crowley is in, right? Tom - 14/09/2009 06:34:38 PM 868 Views
I didn't say I wanted to read occult books. Darth_Katie - 14/09/2009 09:40:40 PM 1401 Views
Fun. Legolas - 14/09/2009 06:31:28 PM 1066 Views
Machiavelli is a good case study for translation vs. original language Tom - 14/09/2009 06:48:46 PM 804 Views
Fact not fiction. Rebekah - 14/09/2009 06:43:32 PM 996 Views
I loved Radzinsky's Rasputin bio Tom - 14/09/2009 06:58:46 PM 889 Views
Re: I loved Radzinsky's Rasputin bio Rebekah - 14/09/2009 07:10:01 PM 898 Views
You're going to force me to start a Dan Brown discussion in a different thread. Tom - 14/09/2009 09:00:32 PM 823 Views
Well, I can do it here, no worries, just think of it as non-non-fiction. jh - 14/09/2009 09:06:34 PM 877 Views
This is pretty much it. Rebekah - 14/09/2009 09:09:18 PM 872 Views
Re: Fact not fiction. Cockatiel of Doom - 17/09/2009 12:40:31 AM 916 Views
Re: Fact not fiction. Rebekah - 17/09/2009 03:08:34 PM 824 Views
Re: Fact not fiction. Cockatiel of Doom - 17/09/2009 11:57:22 PM 766 Views
Re: Non-Fiction survey mapthis - 14/09/2009 07:25:20 PM 806 Views
Legacy of Ashes sounds interesting Tom - 14/09/2009 08:59:38 PM 821 Views
Re: Legacy of Ashes sounds interesting mapthis - 14/09/2009 09:09:30 PM 832 Views
So nossy - 14/09/2009 10:14:47 PM 790 Views
Re: So mapthis - 14/09/2009 10:35:40 PM 776 Views
I do read sometimes. Craig - 14/09/2009 08:01:03 PM 1016 Views
If you liked Jesus, Interrupted... Tom - 14/09/2009 08:58:26 PM 892 Views
Added to The List. *NM* Craig - 14/09/2009 10:28:14 PM 364 Views
I read it quite a lot, obviously. Camilla - 14/09/2009 09:20:40 PM 907 Views
I have Antonia Fraser's bio of Oliver Cromwell. Tom - 15/09/2009 05:14:06 AM 838 Views
Re: I have Antonia Fraser's bio of Oliver Cromwell. Camilla - 15/09/2009 08:07:28 AM 890 Views
Re: Non-Fiction survey random thoughts - 14/09/2009 09:24:35 PM 1022 Views
I'd be interested to know the title of that Lincoln book. *NM* Tom - 15/09/2009 05:11:14 AM 393 Views
Tried by War by James M. McPherson random thoughts - 15/09/2009 07:01:30 PM 877 Views
Thanks! *NM* Tom - 17/09/2009 03:07:50 PM 398 Views
Re: Non-Fiction survey ranagrande - 14/09/2009 10:05:56 PM 813 Views
I'm sorry. I just can't take "pro wrestling" seriously enough to comment on it beyond this. *NM* Tom - 15/09/2009 05:15:13 AM 385 Views
What, pro wrestling is awesome! ranagrande - 16/09/2009 05:59:44 PM 1026 Views
Sweet nossy - 14/09/2009 10:09:21 PM 968 Views
My problem with Fisk is his naivete Tom - 15/09/2009 05:10:00 AM 817 Views
If you're referring to the passages I think you're referring to... Legolas - 15/09/2009 11:06:04 AM 960 Views
I need to read more American Indian books random thoughts - 16/09/2009 07:01:21 PM 801 Views
Good survey! smaug - 14/09/2009 11:40:58 PM 960 Views
Ah...but where do you draw the line on the occult? Tom - 15/09/2009 05:07:14 AM 788 Views
Intent. Craig - 15/09/2009 06:02:39 AM 822 Views
Yea, I would tend to agree. smaug - 15/09/2009 11:10:03 AM 857 Views
Re: Non-Fiction survey Chas - 15/09/2009 12:25:57 AM 843 Views
You should consider reading more non-fiction. *NM* Tom - 15/09/2009 05:04:55 AM 411 Views
It's under consideration. Chas - 15/09/2009 11:50:47 PM 721 Views
I read a lot of it for my classes, so I read very little of it for leisure. Ghavrel - 15/09/2009 12:46:23 AM 942 Views
As someone who read Ab Urbe Condita in Latin...the book you reference "delenda est". Tom - 15/09/2009 05:04:05 AM 829 Views
It's infuriating, yes. *NM* Ghavrel - 15/09/2009 06:22:36 PM 384 Views
Mea culpa; the book in question is Zoch's Ancient Rome. Ghavrel - 15/09/2009 06:45:22 PM 756 Views
Re: Non-Fiction survey Vodalus - 15/09/2009 01:07:13 AM 885 Views
I did a survey about personal libraries, too... Tom - 15/09/2009 05:01:12 AM 834 Views
great survey. Avendesora - 15/09/2009 02:17:26 AM 1097 Views
Re: great survey. Tom - 15/09/2009 04:56:50 AM 880 Views
Interesting questions! Sophy - 15/09/2009 07:20:05 AM 997 Views
I'm not sure if it's a translation issue, but Tom - 17/09/2009 03:10:49 PM 910 Views
That's the English titel yes! Sophy - 18/09/2009 07:03:45 AM 1106 Views
Re: Non-Fiction survey Jonielle - 15/09/2009 11:35:48 AM 1136 Views
Try reading something new you think you'd like and post a review! *NM* Tom - 17/09/2009 03:11:47 PM 340 Views
Books on Napoleon.... Napoleon62 - 15/09/2009 08:03:55 PM 847 Views
Narcissist. *NM* Craig - 15/09/2009 08:21:44 PM 351 Views
David Chandler's The Campaigns of Napoleon is wonderful. *NM* Tom - 17/09/2009 03:13:03 PM 341 Views
i like non-fiction! temeraire - 15/09/2009 09:40:40 PM 900 Views
Lots of people have recommended The Omnivore's Dilemma to me *NM* Tom - 17/09/2009 03:14:09 PM 397 Views
Re: Non-Fiction survey Cockatiel of Doom - 17/09/2009 12:49:35 AM 1108 Views
Re: Non-Fiction survey ajah - 26/09/2009 01:49:16 AM 875 Views
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