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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 1205 Views
Heh. jh - 14/09/2009 05:58:59 PM 920 Views
You associate non-fiction with work? Are you a non-fiction book reviewer by day? Tom - 14/09/2009 06:35:59 PM 754 Views
Nah... jh - 14/09/2009 06:56:41 PM 768 Views
I like non-fiction as long as it's not preachy. Darth_Katie - 14/09/2009 06:25:42 PM 937 Views
So...Bill O'Reilly's out but Aleister Crowley is in, right? Tom - 14/09/2009 06:34:38 PM 832 Views
I didn't say I wanted to read occult books. Darth_Katie - 14/09/2009 09:40:40 PM 1368 Views
Fun. Legolas - 14/09/2009 06:31:28 PM 1015 Views
Machiavelli is a good case study for translation vs. original language Tom - 14/09/2009 06:48:46 PM 766 Views
Fact not fiction. Rebekah - 14/09/2009 06:43:32 PM 952 Views
I loved Radzinsky's Rasputin bio Tom - 14/09/2009 06:58:46 PM 840 Views
Re: I loved Radzinsky's Rasputin bio Rebekah - 14/09/2009 07:10:01 PM 861 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 781 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 834 Views
This is pretty much it. Rebekah - 14/09/2009 09:09:18 PM 829 Views
Re: Fact not fiction. Cockatiel of Doom - 17/09/2009 12:40:31 AM 879 Views
Re: Fact not fiction. Rebekah - 17/09/2009 03:08:34 PM 776 Views
Re: Fact not fiction. Cockatiel of Doom - 17/09/2009 11:57:22 PM 728 Views
Re: Non-Fiction survey mapthis - 14/09/2009 07:25:20 PM 764 Views
Legacy of Ashes sounds interesting Tom - 14/09/2009 08:59:38 PM 782 Views
Re: Legacy of Ashes sounds interesting mapthis - 14/09/2009 09:09:30 PM 793 Views
So nossy - 14/09/2009 10:14:47 PM 750 Views
Re: So mapthis - 14/09/2009 10:35:40 PM 741 Views
I do read sometimes. Craig - 14/09/2009 08:01:03 PM 962 Views
If you liked Jesus, Interrupted... Tom - 14/09/2009 08:58:26 PM 825 Views
Added to The List. *NM* Craig - 14/09/2009 10:28:14 PM 345 Views
I read it quite a lot, obviously. Camilla - 14/09/2009 09:20:40 PM 861 Views
I have Antonia Fraser's bio of Oliver Cromwell. Tom - 15/09/2009 05:14:06 AM 803 Views
Re: I have Antonia Fraser's bio of Oliver Cromwell. Camilla - 15/09/2009 08:07:28 AM 854 Views
Re: Non-Fiction survey random thoughts - 14/09/2009 09:24:35 PM 969 Views
I'd be interested to know the title of that Lincoln book. *NM* Tom - 15/09/2009 05:11:14 AM 371 Views
Tried by War by James M. McPherson random thoughts - 15/09/2009 07:01:30 PM 837 Views
Thanks! *NM* Tom - 17/09/2009 03:07:50 PM 378 Views
Re: Non-Fiction survey ranagrande - 14/09/2009 10:05:56 PM 775 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 365 Views
What, pro wrestling is awesome! ranagrande - 16/09/2009 05:59:44 PM 986 Views
Sweet nossy - 14/09/2009 10:09:21 PM 918 Views
My problem with Fisk is his naivete Tom - 15/09/2009 05:10:00 AM 779 Views
If you're referring to the passages I think you're referring to... Legolas - 15/09/2009 11:06:04 AM 921 Views
I need to read more American Indian books random thoughts - 16/09/2009 07:01:21 PM 766 Views
Good survey! smaug - 14/09/2009 11:40:58 PM 907 Views
Ah...but where do you draw the line on the occult? Tom - 15/09/2009 05:07:14 AM 748 Views
Intent. Craig - 15/09/2009 06:02:39 AM 780 Views
Yea, I would tend to agree. smaug - 15/09/2009 11:10:03 AM 821 Views
Re: Non-Fiction survey Chas - 15/09/2009 12:25:57 AM 800 Views
You should consider reading more non-fiction. *NM* Tom - 15/09/2009 05:04:55 AM 392 Views
It's under consideration. Chas - 15/09/2009 11:50:47 PM 680 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 871 Views
As someone who read Ab Urbe Condita in Latin...the book you reference "delenda est". Tom - 15/09/2009 05:04:05 AM 792 Views
It's infuriating, yes. *NM* Ghavrel - 15/09/2009 06:22:36 PM 366 Views
Mea culpa; the book in question is Zoch's Ancient Rome. Ghavrel - 15/09/2009 06:45:22 PM 711 Views
Re: Non-Fiction survey Vodalus - 15/09/2009 01:07:13 AM 826 Views
I did a survey about personal libraries, too... Tom - 15/09/2009 05:01:12 AM 794 Views
great survey. Avendesora - 15/09/2009 02:17:26 AM 1044 Views
Re: great survey. Tom - 15/09/2009 04:56:50 AM 823 Views
Interesting questions! Sophy - 15/09/2009 07:20:05 AM 941 Views
I'm not sure if it's a translation issue, but Tom - 17/09/2009 03:10:49 PM 877 Views
That's the English titel yes! Sophy - 18/09/2009 07:03:45 AM 1066 Views
Re: Non-Fiction survey Jonielle - 15/09/2009 11:35:48 AM 1085 Views
Try reading something new you think you'd like and post a review! *NM* Tom - 17/09/2009 03:11:47 PM 322 Views
Books on Napoleon.... Napoleon62 - 15/09/2009 08:03:55 PM 807 Views
Narcissist. *NM* Craig - 15/09/2009 08:21:44 PM 333 Views
David Chandler's The Campaigns of Napoleon is wonderful. *NM* Tom - 17/09/2009 03:13:03 PM 319 Views
i like non-fiction! temeraire - 15/09/2009 09:40:40 PM 856 Views
Lots of people have recommended The Omnivore's Dilemma to me *NM* Tom - 17/09/2009 03:14:09 PM 378 Views
Re: Non-Fiction survey Cockatiel of Doom - 17/09/2009 12:49:35 AM 1058 Views
Re: Non-Fiction survey ajah - 26/09/2009 01:49:16 AM 837 Views
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