book recommendations

[Sandstone Outcropping]

About to continue my YEAR OF STEINBECK with Cannery Row.

Nice. Which other ones have you read in 2025?

East of Eden; Grapes of Wrath; Mice and Men

great stuff

[ben ji]

I just started East of Eden based off this thread. I read grapes of wrath a while back and enjoyed that so hopefully east of Eden delivers!

[Rage Against the McKee]

I just started East of Eden based off this thread. I read grapes of wrath a while back and enjoyed that so hopefully east of Eden delivers!

I thought it was great.

[DQ12]

I just started East of Eden based off this thread. I read grapes of wrath a while back and enjoyed that so hopefully east of Eden delivers!

It's a joy.

[chum1]

It feels trite to say, but Steinbeck is one of my favorites. East of Eden is just epic. Themes of free will, the meaning of life, human nature, the American dream.

[ben ji]

Put east of Eden on hold and started this book tonight, 50 pages in and loving it.

The tldr so far is 2 brothers living in the mountains outside of Yellowstone in an old cabin and do some slightly shady stuff to get by, how shady will they end up going?!?

[mocat]

HOLY crap

[star seed 7]

HOLY crap

i think of that potato/tomato europe tweet all the time and both of those being imported from NA is pretty mind blowing.

[mocat]

HOLY crap

i think of that potato/tomato europe tweet all the time and both of those being imported from NA is pretty mind blowing.

I have a similar albeit much more chronologically condensed relationship with Blood Meridian, but for different reasons. BM is just so unrelentingly dark and monotonous, so I have to step back for a while. But then the writing is just so perfect.

It makes no difference what men think of war. War endures. May as well ask men what they think of stone. War was always here. Before man was, war waited for him. The ultimate trade awaiting its ultimate practitioner. That is the way it was, and will be. That way, and not some other way.

[star seed 7]

HOLY crap

i think of that potato/tomato europe tweet all the time and both of those being imported from NA is pretty mind blowing.

I have a similar albeit much more chronologically condensed relationship with Blood Meridian, but for different reasons. BM is just so unrelentingly dark and monotonous, so I have to step back for a while. But then the writing is just so perfect.

It makes no difference what men think of war. War endures. May as well ask men what they think of stone. War was always here. Before man was, war waited for him. The ultimate trade awaiting its ultimate practitioner. That is the way it was, and will be. That way, and not some other way.

yeah i know, just something i'd been thinking about a lot lately.  i don't know why.

[nicname]

Urantia

Holy crap. I posted in this thread, because it is indeed a book, but could have easily put it in any religion, occult, esoteric, conspiracy thread.

Pretty wild stuff. The book itself is ~2,000 pages. A collection of papers on various topics said to be dictated by extraterrestrial/supernatural beings over the course of up to 20-30 years (1925-1955) of a man who fell into states of extremely deep sleep.

It was probably simply put together by a group of 20-30 occultists in Illinois over said time, and can be enjoyed as high-level science fiction.

The book itself is now public domain and available on audible and pdfs can be found on the web.

Here is a Wikipedia https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Urantia_Book

This guy William Sadler is the main guy who initially started observing the guy who fell into the deep sleep states https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_S._Sadler

His wife also prob played a large role. She was a niece of the Kellogg’s cereal mogul https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lena_Sadler

Here is their foundation https://www.urantia.org/

Here is the full book on their foundation website https://www.urantia.org/urantia-book/read-urantia-book-online

[Sandstone Outcropping]

Urantia

Holy crap. I posted in this thread, because it is indeed a book, but could have easily put it in any religion, occult, esoteric, conspiracy thread.

Pretty wild stuff. The book itself is ~2,000 pages. A collection of papers on various topics said to be dictated by extraterrestrial/supernatural beings over the course of up to 20-30 years (1925-1955) of a man who fell into states of extremely deep sleep.

It was probably simply put together by a group of 20-30 occultists in Illinois over said time, and can be enjoyed as high-level science fiction.

The book itself is now public domain and available on audible and pdfs can be found on the web.

Here is a Wikipedia https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Urantia_Book

This guy William Sadler is the main guy who initially started observing the guy who fell into the deep sleep states https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_S._Sadler

His wife also prob played a large role. She was a niece of the Kellogg’s cereal mogul https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lena_Sadler

Here is their foundation https://www.urantia.org/

Here is the full book on their foundation website https://www.urantia.org/urantia-book/read-urantia-book-online

I've never heard of this before.
Sounds like something they would talk about on "Coast to Coast AM with Art Bell".
Edit: I like the idea that there is a Melchizidek involved.
He is one of the most enigmatic figures in the Bible. It is like everyone is supposed to know about Melchizidek and his powers but the Bible tells us almost nothing about him.

[nicname]

Urantia

Holy crap. I posted in this thread, because it is indeed a book, but could have easily put it in any religion, occult, esoteric, conspiracy thread.

Pretty wild stuff. The book itself is ~2,000 pages. A collection of papers on various topics said to be dictated by extraterrestrial/supernatural beings over the course of up to 20-30 years (1925-1955) of a man who fell into states of extremely deep sleep.

It was probably simply put together by a group of 20-30 occultists in Illinois over said time, and can be enjoyed as high-level science fiction.

The book itself is now public domain and available on audible and pdfs can be found on the web.

Here is a Wikipedia https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Urantia_Book

This guy William Sadler is the main guy who initially started observing the guy who fell into the deep sleep states https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_S._Sadler

His wife also prob played a large role. She was a niece of the Kellogg’s cereal mogul https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lena_Sadler

Here is their foundation https://www.urantia.org/

Here is the full book on their foundation website https://www.urantia.org/urantia-book/read-urantia-book-online

I've never heard of this before.
Sounds like something they would talk about on "Coast to Coast AM with Art Bell".
Edit: I like the idea that there is a Melchizidek involved.
He is one of the most enigmatic figures in the Bible. It is like everyone is supposed to know about Melchizidek and his powers but the Bible tells us almost nothing about him.

Totally Art Bell type stuff.

Regarding Melchizidek it’s usually assumed that the mere mention of someone like him would be enough to allow the original hearer or reader to recall readily known info, stories, etc at the time. There is a slightly more in depth story about him in Enoch 2. There are also some Dead Sea scrolls that talk about him, as well as some nag hammadi and Gnostic sources, which imo are less reliable. But I am biased, of course.

[CHONGS]

Nicname really needs to read Foucault's Pendulum.  I bet he'd dig it .

[CHONGS]

I'd also recommend Dictionary of the Khazars as well.