Welcome to Animus Libri!

I plan to provide a series of useful book reviews as I mow through my endless queued book stack.

If I have spent the time to consume a book, I may be able to provide a few useful insights to others who may be thinking of buying the book. Alternatively, I may be able to alert people to books which they would otherwise be unaware of and that they may enjoy.

Books reviewed will be of a very diverse variety. I hope to be able to capture the spirit and soul of these books, at least sufficiently enough to help any readers decide if the book would be of interest to them. I'll also try hard not to spoil the storylines of any fiction or non-fiction story.

Below, you will find lists of books currently being actively read, bookmarked (partially read but currently not being actively consumed), and waiting to be read.

11 June 2010

Your Ten Top Non-Fiction Books

A friend of mine had a great idea... a list of the ten best fiction books on his shelves.

I'm taking advantage of the concept but proposing the posting of lists of the ten best non-fiction books on your shelves. A brief description of why you chose your ten is a bonus.

My List:

  1. The Prince and the Discourses (Niccolo Machiavelli)
  2. Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance (Robert Pirsig)
  3. The Art of War (Sun Tzu, Cleary Translation)
  4. Design Patterns (the "Gang of Four")
  5. The Mythical Man Month (Fred Brooks)
  6. The Second World War (Winston Churchill)
  7. The Complete Calvin and Hobbes (Bill Waterson)
  8. The SAS Survival Guide (John Wiseman)
  9. A Brief History of Time (Stephen Hawking)
  10. Amo, Amas, Amat and More (Eugene Ehrlich)
Bonus Entry: Anything starting with FM-xxxx. (FM stands for Field Manual, US military) But since these I have on CD, I'd have to not include them in my base 10.

Another friend of mine said #1 and 3 above give you advice on how to live, #2 on why. I put #4 in because it represented a pardigm shift (literally) in my field and in my mindset. #5 explains why Project Management appears to have nothing in common with science or art (or success usually). #6 is about one of the key wars in human history and written by one of the most key figures. #7 is joy in book form. #8 could save your life. #9 will blow your mind (at least it did mine). #10 reminds us why some things from antiquity matter and how they can still be fun two thousand years later.

Your list?
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1 comment:

  1. McBugBearJune 28, 2010 at 8:42 AM

    1) The Trouble with Physics (Lee Smolin)
    2) Three Roads to Quantum Gravity (Lee Smolin)
    3) The New Edge of the Anvil (Jack Andrews)
    4) The Fall of Rome (Bryan Ward-Perkins)
    5) British Military Flintlock Rifles 1740-1840 (DeWitt Bailey)
    6) A Farwell to Alms (Gregory Clark)
    7) Taken By Storm (Ross McKitrick)
    8) Meltdown (Patrick Michaels
    9) Book of Five Rings (Musashi)
    10) Architectural Ironwork (Dona Meilach)

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