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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 1410 Views
Heh. jh - 14/09/2009 05:58:59 PM 1116 Views
You associate non-fiction with work? Are you a non-fiction book reviewer by day? Tom - 14/09/2009 06:35:59 PM 944 Views
Nah... jh - 14/09/2009 06:56:41 PM 947 Views
I like non-fiction as long as it's not preachy. Darth_Katie - 14/09/2009 06:25:42 PM 1139 Views
So...Bill O'Reilly's out but Aleister Crowley is in, right? Tom - 14/09/2009 06:34:38 PM 1015 Views
I didn't say I wanted to read occult books. Darth_Katie - 14/09/2009 09:40:40 PM 1537 Views
Fun. Legolas - 14/09/2009 06:31:28 PM 1243 Views
Machiavelli is a good case study for translation vs. original language Tom - 14/09/2009 06:48:46 PM 958 Views
Fact not fiction. Rebekah - 14/09/2009 06:43:32 PM 1151 Views
I loved Radzinsky's Rasputin bio Tom - 14/09/2009 06:58:46 PM 1033 Views
Re: I loved Radzinsky's Rasputin bio Rebekah - 14/09/2009 07:10:01 PM 1036 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 961 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 1018 Views
This is pretty much it. Rebekah - 14/09/2009 09:09:18 PM 1011 Views
Re: Fact not fiction. Cockatiel of Doom - 17/09/2009 12:40:31 AM 1058 Views
Re: Fact not fiction. Rebekah - 17/09/2009 03:08:34 PM 965 Views
Re: Fact not fiction. Cockatiel of Doom - 17/09/2009 11:57:22 PM 910 Views
Re: Non-Fiction survey mapthis - 14/09/2009 07:25:20 PM 958 Views
Legacy of Ashes sounds interesting Tom - 14/09/2009 08:59:38 PM 953 Views
Re: Legacy of Ashes sounds interesting mapthis - 14/09/2009 09:09:30 PM 983 Views
So nossy - 14/09/2009 10:14:47 PM 922 Views
Re: So mapthis - 14/09/2009 10:35:40 PM 946 Views
I do read sometimes. Craig - 14/09/2009 08:01:03 PM 1170 Views
If you liked Jesus, Interrupted... Tom - 14/09/2009 08:58:26 PM 1029 Views
Added to The List. *NM* Craig - 14/09/2009 10:28:14 PM 430 Views
I read it quite a lot, obviously. Camilla - 14/09/2009 09:20:40 PM 1076 Views
I have Antonia Fraser's bio of Oliver Cromwell. Tom - 15/09/2009 05:14:06 AM 987 Views
Re: I have Antonia Fraser's bio of Oliver Cromwell. Camilla - 15/09/2009 08:07:28 AM 1032 Views
Re: Non-Fiction survey random thoughts - 14/09/2009 09:24:35 PM 1177 Views
I'd be interested to know the title of that Lincoln book. *NM* Tom - 15/09/2009 05:11:14 AM 467 Views
Tried by War by James M. McPherson random thoughts - 15/09/2009 07:01:30 PM 1013 Views
Thanks! *NM* Tom - 17/09/2009 03:07:50 PM 475 Views
Re: Non-Fiction survey ranagrande - 14/09/2009 10:05:56 PM 965 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 460 Views
What, pro wrestling is awesome! ranagrande - 16/09/2009 05:59:44 PM 1169 Views
Sweet nossy - 14/09/2009 10:09:21 PM 1112 Views
My problem with Fisk is his naivete Tom - 15/09/2009 05:10:00 AM 974 Views
If you're referring to the passages I think you're referring to... Legolas - 15/09/2009 11:06:04 AM 1107 Views
I need to read more American Indian books random thoughts - 16/09/2009 07:01:21 PM 956 Views
Good survey! smaug - 14/09/2009 11:40:58 PM 1128 Views
Ah...but where do you draw the line on the occult? Tom - 15/09/2009 05:07:14 AM 925 Views
Intent. Craig - 15/09/2009 06:02:39 AM 969 Views
Yea, I would tend to agree. smaug - 15/09/2009 11:10:03 AM 990 Views
Re: Non-Fiction survey Chas - 15/09/2009 12:25:57 AM 972 Views
You should consider reading more non-fiction. *NM* Tom - 15/09/2009 05:04:55 AM 496 Views
It's under consideration. Chas - 15/09/2009 11:50:47 PM 863 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 1124 Views
As someone who read Ab Urbe Condita in Latin...the book you reference "delenda est". Tom - 15/09/2009 05:04:05 AM 974 Views
It's infuriating, yes. *NM* Ghavrel - 15/09/2009 06:22:36 PM 451 Views
Mea culpa; the book in question is Zoch's Ancient Rome. Ghavrel - 15/09/2009 06:45:22 PM 898 Views
Re: Non-Fiction survey Vodalus - 15/09/2009 01:07:13 AM 1038 Views
I did a survey about personal libraries, too... Tom - 15/09/2009 05:01:12 AM 974 Views
great survey. Avendesora - 15/09/2009 02:17:26 AM 1274 Views
Re: great survey. Tom - 15/09/2009 04:56:50 AM 1039 Views
Interesting questions! Sophy - 15/09/2009 07:20:05 AM 1173 Views
I'm not sure if it's a translation issue, but Tom - 17/09/2009 03:10:49 PM 1049 Views
That's the English titel yes! Sophy - 18/09/2009 07:03:45 AM 1246 Views
Re: Non-Fiction survey Jonielle - 15/09/2009 11:35:48 AM 1285 Views
Try reading something new you think you'd like and post a review! *NM* Tom - 17/09/2009 03:11:47 PM 407 Views
Books on Napoleon.... Napoleon62 - 15/09/2009 08:03:55 PM 997 Views
Narcissist. *NM* Craig - 15/09/2009 08:21:44 PM 425 Views
David Chandler's The Campaigns of Napoleon is wonderful. *NM* Tom - 17/09/2009 03:13:03 PM 412 Views
i like non-fiction! temeraire - 15/09/2009 09:40:40 PM 1037 Views
Lots of people have recommended The Omnivore's Dilemma to me *NM* Tom - 17/09/2009 03:14:09 PM 464 Views
Re: Non-Fiction survey Cockatiel of Doom - 17/09/2009 12:49:35 AM 1254 Views
Re: Non-Fiction survey ajah - 26/09/2009 01:49:16 AM 1005 Views
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