[PenultimateManStanding]

Anybody like to read biographies? We all have our various walks of life and know what we know about life from the kinds of people we meet in our jobs, churches, bars, hobbies, etc. A good way to broaden our perspective is to read biographies. My local library has thousands of biographies. Lately I've been reading mostly science books, but in the past I've picked up many interesting biographies, mostly artists but plenty of others too: Thomas Edison, J. D. Rockefeller, Henry Kissinger, Alexander The Great, Andrew Jackson, Adolf Hitler, Joseph Stalin, Marc Antony, Frederick The Great, Richard Feynman, Janis Joplin, Bob Dylan. When I finish the books about evolution I'm reading now, I plan to pick up David Brin's The Postman which is in the local library. I also want to read John Jake's Centennial series. But biographies are definately on the list; any recommendations? I read three different biographies of Picasso, including one by Patrick O'Brian, the sea adventure writer and one by Arianna Huffington. The man comes across very differently when you read different biographical portrayals of him. The O'Brian account is sympathetic, the Huffington one is not. As I've said elsewhere, the biography of Maurice Utrillo is a hoot. The bio of Janis Joplin was more of a first hand account of a friend of her's. I couldn't finish it because it was boring: sex, drugs, sex, drugs, sex, drugs, rehab, more sex, drug, sex, drugs. Cool for about 40 or 50 pages, but then pointless. There was a psychological study of rock-stars I heard of once but can't remember it, something about narcissistic megalomania I guess. One very interesting book with a whole collection of short biographies was Intellectuals by Paul Johnson. Bios of famous lefty intellectuals such as Karl Marx, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Henrik Ibsen, et al. They all have one thing in common: an abstract general love of Mankind combined with an exploitative nastiness when dealing with individual people. Maybe Johnson is biased.

[Jake_old]

I've never really thought about reading biographies. I think its because all the biographies I see are Celebrity type things, like Britney Spears!!!

I would like to read Mein Kampf (sp?), is that the Adolf Hitler one you've read?

Rockefeller's would be good too?

What did you think?

[PenultimateManStanding]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('RedJake', 'I')'ve never really thought about reading biographies. I think its because all the biographies I see are Celebrity type things, like Britney Spears!!!

I would like to read Mein Kampf (sp?), is that the Adolf Hitler one you've read?

Rockefeller's would be good too?

What did you think?

[PrairieMule]

If I can find the time I'd like to read pick up a biography on Teddy Roosevelt. I have always admired the way he overcame his limitations on his path to greatness. Winston Churchill also inspires me with his optimism, defiance of advesity, and humor.

John Mcain's new book is on my short list before 2008.

[PrairieMule]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('RedJake', 'I')'ve never really thought about reading biographies. I think its because all the biographies I see are Celebrity type things, like Britney Spears!!!

I would like to read Mein Kampf (sp?), is that the Adolf Hitler one you've read?

Rockefeller's would be good too?

What did you think?