# Books you've read because of the SDMB **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [December 4, 2003, 9:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/books-youve-read-because-of-the-sdmb/217025 "2003-12-04T21:14:34Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![CaptBushido](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a88e4f/32.png) [@CaptBushido](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CaptBushido)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2003, 7:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/books-youve-read-because-of-the-sdmb/217025/21 "2003-12-05T07:31:11Z")
**1632** by Eric Flint. But only because someone linked to a page where I could read it free online. I am SO cheap… ---
**Author:** ![Nurobath](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/a88e57/32.png) [@Nurobath](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nurobath)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2003, 7:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/books-youve-read-because-of-the-sdmb/217025/22 "2003-12-05T07:45:11Z")
Robin Hobb’s **Farseer Trilogy**. Very good series. Also read some Pratchet for the first time. I need to get more of both. I just bookmark the book recommendation threads so I remember what to look for later. ---
**Author:** ![saintnobody](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a183cd/32.png) [@saintnobody](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/saintnobody)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2003, 9:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/books-youve-read-because-of-the-sdmb/217025/23 "2003-12-05T09:14:56Z")
“I read Neuromancer thanks to the SDMB, and I swear one day I’m going to read more of Gibson’s stuff.” Same here, will be getting Mona Lisa Overdrive next week, is it worth it or should i go for another title? ---
**Author:** ![SolGrundy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bbce88/32.png) [@SolGrundy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SolGrundy)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2003, 9:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/books-youve-read-because-of-the-sdmb/217025/24 "2003-12-05T09:19:18Z")
I already mentioned in another thread, but I’ve bought the following because of Doper user names and/or mentions: **A Princess of Mars** by Edgar Rice Burroughs **The Mysterious Island** by Jules Verne **Triplanetary** by E.E. Smith ---
**Author:** ![Darkhold](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/90db22/32.png) [@Darkhold](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darkhold)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2003, 9:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/books-youve-read-because-of-the-sdmb/217025/25 "2003-12-05T09:19:40Z")
**A Peoples History of the Untied States** **Lies my Teacher Told Me** **Lies and the Lying Liars That Tell Them** I asked for a few conservate books to balance it in one thread and got no replies so I guess I’ll just have to keep reading Liberal books. ---
**Author:** ![Sublight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/439d5e/32.png) [@Sublight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sublight)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2003, 11:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/books-youve-read-because-of-the-sdmb/217025/26 "2003-12-05T11:10:12Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by KidCharlemagne \* > \*\*We must have seen the same thread because now I recall having read Survivor based on an SD recommendation. \*\* I think it was either a “books that freaked you out” or “books on your shelf that get the strangest looks” thread. ---
**Author:** ![BiblioCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ed8c4c/32.png) [@BiblioCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BiblioCat)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2003, 11:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/books-youve-read-because-of-the-sdmb/217025/27 "2003-12-05T11:42:32Z")
_Fast Food Nation_ and _Guns, Germs and Steel_ and the two that pop to mind first. I know there are a few more. ---
**Author:** ![dantheman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dantheman/32/9421_2.png) [@dantheman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dantheman)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2003, 12:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/books-youve-read-because-of-the-sdmb/217025/28 "2003-12-05T12:57:28Z")
I read the Ice and Fire series based on the recommendation of a particular Doper, but not because of any particular thread. I also read the first Discworld book because so many were raving about it here. Not for me, though. ---
**Author:** ![Amp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Amp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amp)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2003, 1:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/books-youve-read-because-of-the-sdmb/217025/29 "2003-12-05T13:09:16Z")
_The Moon Is A Harsh Mistress_ ---
**Author:** ![NE\_Texan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/e99b99/32.png) [@NE\_Texan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NE_Texan)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2003, 2:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/books-youve-read-because-of-the-sdmb/217025/30 "2003-12-05T14:22:37Z")
**CrankyAsAnOldMan** sent me _Daughter of the Forest_ by Juliet Marillier as part of an SDMB book swap. I probably would not have picked it up on my own, but I did enjoy it. On the other hand, I recommend books all the time. I don’t know if anyone reads a book based on the recommendations or not, but hey, advice is free. ---
**Author:** ![evilhomer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/43a26b/32.png) [@evilhomer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/evilhomer)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2003, 3:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/books-youve-read-because-of-the-sdmb/217025/31 "2003-12-05T15:49:46Z")
Someone (sorry, can’t remember who) recommended Peter Tremayne’s _Sister Fidelma_ series. I picked one up at my library because of their description, and I’ve been hooked since. I recommend that anyone liking historical mysteries should check these books out. ---
**Author:** ![soakman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e47774/32.png) [@soakman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/soakman)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2003, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/books-youve-read-because-of-the-sdmb/217025/32 "2003-12-05T15:59:25Z")
Patrick O’Brian’s _Master & Commander_ series. I would’ve had no idea they existed if not for this group. ---
**Author:** ![smoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c5a1d2/32.png) [@smoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/smoke)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2003, 4:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/books-youve-read-because-of-the-sdmb/217025/33 "2003-12-05T16:04:30Z")
I don’t know how I forgot to include **Guns, Germs and Steel** by Jared Diamond- I swear, the SD must have sent lots of money Mr. Diamond’s way. That book is mentioned very frequently here. ## And now that our esteemed moderator has checked in, I remembered that I never would have even _heard_ of Ukelele Ike had it not been for him. So thanks for that. Movies: I have followed almost every horror thread that’s come up. ## **Ringu** \*\*Assault on Precinct The works of **Lucio Fulci** **Suspiria** Short Stories: “The Yellow Wallpaper”, by Charlotte Perkins Gilman “Grenville’s Planet”, by Michael Shaara ## More Books: ## **The Unexpected Mrs. Pollifax** by Dorothy Gilman **Edward Gorey** (I don’t know how I missed this stuff the first time around) **Slaughterhouse: The Shocking Story of Greed, Neglect, and Inhumane Treatment Inside the U.S. Meat Industry** by Gail A. Eisnitz **Fast Food Nation: The Dark Side of the All-American Meal** by Eric Schlosser **Measly Middle Ages (Horrible Histories)** byTerry Deary **The Hiroshima Maidens: A Story of Courage, Compassion, and Survival** by Rodney Barker **Ace High: The War in the Air over the Western Front 1914-18** by Alan, Clark **Really, Really, Really, Really Weird Stories** by John Shirley Music: **Strauss: Also sprach Zarathustra, etc / Herbert von Karajan, Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra** by Richard Strauss **The Vintage Recordings of Cliff Edwards (Ukulele Ike)** by Cliff “Ukulele Ike” **Holst: The Planets / Dutoit, Montreal Symphony Orchestra (Penguin Music Classics Series)** by G. Holst **Strung Out On OK Computer: The String Quartet Tribute To Radiohead** by Various Artists **Moussorgsky: Night on Bald Mountain/Pictures at an Exhibition** by Modest Mussorgsky That’s enough for now. ---
**Author:** ![smoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c5a1d2/32.png) [@smoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/smoke)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2003, 4:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/books-youve-read-because-of-the-sdmb/217025/34 "2003-12-05T16:06:05Z")
That should be **Assault on Precinct 13** ---
**Author:** ![Shirley\_Ujest](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/45deac/32.png) [@Shirley\_Ujest](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shirley_Ujest)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2003, 4:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/books-youve-read-because-of-the-sdmb/217025/35 "2003-12-05T16:32:50Z")
**Delphica** sent me a couple of amazing books that otherwise I would have passed over and continued reading my sappy romance novels. Which I am proud to say I read so there. **The Lemon Jelly Cake** is a definate keeper. **On Stranger Tides** by Tim Powers is a book I brought up in discussion asking opinions on and have since bought and read through 75% of it. Have gone on to buy **The Anubis Gate** based on same recommendation. **The Emperors of Chocolate: the secret war between Hersey and Mars** ( or something close to that) is a fascinating read into the story behind the two biggest candy makers in the US and nearly the world. For those who like a good behind the scenes historical account of things, this one is nicely paced and never runs dry. Cannot recommend it enough and it has given me loads of useless trivia to amaze my friends with. Far and large, my favorite recommendation is **Lindsey Davis** and her **Falco Mystery Series** of which there are 15 books out now and I am on book 3. The humor of the main character is just top notch and the heroine is no fluff herself. This series is my Winter 2004 Self Assigned Winter Reading Project. ( Along with the rest of 2003’s winter project writer readings of Barbara Metzger, whose older books I’ve had to scrounge around to find.) I would like to recommend a book for those who like a well researched, well written book of non-fiction: **Tobacco: a cultural history of how an exotic plant seduced civilization** by Iain Gately. Just fascinating on the history behind the noxious little weed. Its been a bathroom read since June and though it can be a bit dry at points, it amazes me how tobacco has saved society and destroyed it all the same. ---
**Author:** ![Shirley\_Ujest](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/45deac/32.png) [@Shirley\_Ujest](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shirley_Ujest)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2003, 4:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/books-youve-read-because-of-the-sdmb/217025/36 "2003-12-05T16:49:18Z")
[Tobacco: A cultural history of how an exotic plant seduced civilisation](http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0802139604/qid=1070642015/sr=1-2/ref=sr_1_2/104-0492519-8360725?v=glance&s=books) [The Emperors of Chocolate: inside the secret world of Hershey and Mars](http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0767904575/qid=1070642211/sr=1-1/ref=sr_1_1/104-0492519-8360725?v=glance&s=books) [Lindsey Davis 1st book of the series: The Silver Pigs](http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0345369076/qid=1070642273/sr=1-1/ref=sr_1_1/104-0492519-8360725?v=glance&s=books) [Lindsey Davis’ website so that you can figure out the order of novels](http://www.lindseydavis.co.uk/) [The lemon jelly cake](http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0252061632/qid=1070642414/sr=1-1/ref=sr_1_1/104-04925198360725?v=glance&s=books) [size- \*\*Thanks Delphica! \*\* thats my review that comes in in the numero uno spot. [On stranger tides](http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0441626831/qid=1070642789//ref=sr_8_xs_ap_i0_xgl14/104-0492519-8360725?v=glance&s=books&n=507846) [The Anubis Gates](http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0441004016/qid=1070642835/sr=2-3/ref=sr_2_3/104-0492519-8360725) and one I forgot and who mentioned it, an out of print book [Sinbad & Me](http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0440980747/qid=1070642866/sr=1-1/ref=sr_1_1/104-0492519-8360725?v=glance&s=books) If you ever find it anywhere, buy it. Very hard to find. Going price is anywhere from $50 - 150. I found my copy for $3, so you can imagine how happy I was and even happier when I realllllly liked the book. Its a young adult book, about 8-12 years of age reading range. ---
**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2003, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/books-youve-read-because-of-the-sdmb/217025/37 "2003-12-05T16:51:10Z")
Guns, Germs, and Steel for me too. ---
**Author:** ![ageless6](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9de053/32.png) [@ageless6](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ageless6)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2003, 4:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/books-youve-read-because-of-the-sdmb/217025/38 "2003-12-05T16:53:24Z")
I don’t even have room for a book case in this tiny apt. All my books are in many boxes,so I can’t look at them and say which ones came from SD referrals, but I estimate at least 50% are. I am very fortunate in that while I am low income,my sister is definitely not,and when I get near the end of a pile of books,I just send her my wish list for 10 or 15 tomes and vwalaatida, they appear on my doorstep in a few days. For free! Who amongst you are guilty of envy? Really,that many? But I was introduced to PHILIP KINDRED DICK by a book thread here,and he fascinated me. I went crazy on my wish lists and I’ve read probably 3/4 of everything he’s written. I suppose you either like him or not. I love 'im. I also decided to read “THE MOON IS A HARSH MISTRESS” because of the SD. I’m not too impressed. Some of his ideas are interesting,but his characters and dialogue,as far as I’m concerned,are cliche’d and too itsy-cutesy. So there! All you Heinlein worshipers are free to despise me. I much prefer A C CLARKE. And remember,I get free, new(ah,that smell)books. Nyah! ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2003, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/books-youve-read-because-of-the-sdmb/217025/39 "2003-12-05T16:59:12Z")
I only have a couple that I’ve read exclusively because of Dopers. I read **House of Leaves** because a lot of people here claimed it was the scariest book they ever read. It’s one of the least scary horror novels I’ve ever read, so it makes me really wonder about those people. I also read **Good Omens** because people said it was really funny. And it was. When it wasn’t deadly boring. I think there’s a reason there’s only been a couple… ---
**Author:** ![BuckleberryFerry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/5f9b8f/32.png) [@BuckleberryFerry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BuckleberryFerry)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2003, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/books-youve-read-because-of-the-sdmb/217025/40 "2003-12-05T17:10:55Z")
**The Crimson Petal and the White** –I saw the thread, then saw the title in the bookstore, so I snatched it up–unusual for me, as I don’t usually read 900-page books on a whim. Thanks so much! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/books-youve-read-because-of-the-sdmb/217025.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/books-youve-read-because-of-the-sdmb/217025.md?page=3)