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I don't as a rule read much when I'm away with Scouts, there seems to be too many other things going on.

However I'm looking for a couple of books to take to the Jambo to read when I watching the site!!

I have read everything that Grisham has ever done.A lot of what Mario Puzo has done. I read the The Da Vinci Code, in less than 3 days.

Any ideas?

Eamonn.

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If you liked DaVince Code, you'd probably like his other books as well. I can highly recommend "Angels and Demons", his book immediately before DaVinci Code. He has published 2 other books as well, "Digital Fortress" and "Deception Point". They are earlier works, but still fun reads.

 

Of course, a whole cottage industry has sprung up around "DaVinci Code", written by folks who seem to have forgotten that it is a work of fiction :). Some of those are actually pretty interesting (although the titles escape me right now), while some are just silly.

 

Also, if you happen to be interested in astronomy at all (or just about the reality of working in science), I would HIGHLY recommend a book called "First Light" by Richard Preston. It's about the guys who work at the Mt Palomar observatory. Sounds dry, but the story is really well told about the people as well as their work. Preston has also written some very good techno-scary books, including The Hot Zone, The Cobra Event, and The Demon in the Freezer. Oh, in regards to Palomar, if you're into history, there's a book called The Perfect Machine, which is about the building of the Palomar Observatory. Very good read about the politics and personalities of the rich and famous in the early 1900's.

 

Lastly, another history book, this one by Stephen Ambrose called Nothing Like It In the World, about the building of the transcontinental railroad. A long, but very interesting read.

 

They're all available in paperback at this time.

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Last week at summer camp a scout dad shared a book with me entitled "A Walk in the Woods" by Bill Bryson. It's a story about two average Joes and their quest to hike the Appalachian Trail. Some adult language but quite humorous. A thumbs up on the first half that I've completed.

 

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Eamonn,

 

My wife likes to go the the Model Home sales around here. She always buys a lot of books at them for 50 cents each. One time she came back with a Boy Scout handbook. She's got a lot of Grisham and Patterson books among others. I like Grisham too, and have read quite a lot of his books but not all, maybe after a few more Model Home sales. I started reading the James Patterson books since we have a lot of them. I like them a lot. A lot of his books have been made into movies, like Grisham's, for example, Kiss the Girls and Along Came a Spider. Patterson's books have lots of chapters. That means each chapter is only a few pages long. I never like to break from reading mid chapter. I can break at most any time with Patterson, that may be a good thing at the jamboree.

 

SWScouter

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If you haven't read it, I heartily recommend "98.6 Degrees: The Art of Keeping Your Ass Alive" by Cody Lundin.

 

It is a fun and informative read and could save your (or someone else's) life one day. I wish the father or leaders of the Scout currently lost in Utah had read this book (assuming he is simply lost).

 

 

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"Flags of Our Fathers" writted by Bradley. It's about his father and the men that raised the flag over Iwo Jima, the long devastating battle, and the lives of those men in the post war years.

 

Nathaniel Philbrik wrote "In the Heart of the Sea", an account of a whaling ship out of Nantucket and the adventures they had on planned 2 year voyage that was cut short when a whale rammed their ship and sunk it. They were 3,000 miles in the middle of the Pacific and rowed to Chile with "no" food. This is a true account of the Essex tradgey which was the inspiration for Melville's Moby Dick.

 

"The Endurance: Shackleton's Legendary Antartic Expedition", by C. Alexander. About Ernest Shackleton and his ill-fated attempt in 1915 to cross Anartica on foot. Their ship was stuck in the ice and crushed before they got to land. They spent nearly 2 years portaging rowboats and sailing from floe to floe before being rescued.

 

All three books have adventures you can share with the boys.

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If you like mysteries, check out John Sanford, Mary Higgins Clark, Harlan Coben, Jonathan Kellerman, Paul White, Diane Mott Davidson, William Lascher, Kathy Reichs, Sara Paretsky, Patricia Cornwell, etc.

You can tell what my second favorite hobby is after Scouting!

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Farley Mowat has some great stuff, here's three of my favorites....

 

- Walk Well My Brother

- Never Cry Wolf

- Lost in the Barrens

 

note: the first one on the list is a three hankie tear jerker...

 

And, I can't remember the author...but, the Sand Pebbles makes for a good read too, as well as Herman Hesse's Siddharta....

 

 

 

 

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I can heartily recommend Scout's Honor by Peter Applebome. It is a balanced view of one Father's introduction to and experiences with Boy Scouting. The author tells the good and the bad, but is not a hatchet job. On balance it is a positive report.

 

Baden

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Le Voyageur mentioned my favorite author of all time, Hermann Hesse, you can't go wrong with Steppenwolf, Narcissus and Goldmund, Magister Ludi (The Glass Bead Game) Rosshalde, Beneath the Wheel, Demian (not the satan Demian) or Journey to the East. Whenever I read Hesse, I can just picture an elderly German gentleman sitting across from me telling the story, his writing style is unique

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Lee Child's books with the character 'Jack Reacher'. A loner ex-Military Police who gets involved in some interesting cases. (www.leechild.com)

 

Stephen Hunter's books with 'Bobby Lee Swagger', ex-Marine sniper trying to live his own life, but... (www.stephenhunter.net)

 

F. Paul Wilson's 'Repairman Jack' books (www.repairmanjack.com)

 

Greg Rucka's 'Atticus Kodiak' books (www.gregrucka.com)

 

Janet Evanovich's 'Stephanie Plum' books are often hilarious

 

Brian M. Wiprud- the guy's stuff is hilarious- Pipsqueak and Stuffed are some of the oddest/funniest stuff I've seen in a while.

 

Pretty near anything by Tim Cahill- adventure/travel from... well, almost a nerd's point of view. Funny!

 

I enjoy science/nature as well- 'Hot Zone' was great, and 'Parasite Rex' by Carl Zimmer is fun and informative... if you don't mind tapeworms, malaria, etc.!

 

Dale Brown (I'd start with 'Flight of the Old Dog'), Robert Ludlum... (wait, I gotta go look at my library again... No, don't go, it'll only take a minu

 

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