Friday, June 5, 2009

Vacation Reading List...

So in the very nick of time a package arrived yesterday. It was a care package from my good friend Heath (he of the Fu-Stache) containing some reading material for the plane rides to/from Orlando and for downtime/evenings etc. I'd already picked up a couple books for that purpose, so it looks like I've got plenty of reading material to bring with me:

  • "On Killing" by Lt. Col. Dave Grossman (I figure this will be a good one to read if I get an annoying seatmate)
  • "To Sail Beyond the Sunset" by Robert A. Heinlein
  • "Monster Hunter International" by Larry Correia
  • "Time Enough for Love" by Robert A. Heinlein

I figure one book on the flight down, one on the flight back and two over the week I'm down ought to tide me over. I got the two Heinlein books about a week ago, and have been chompin' at the bit to tear into the stories of Lazarus Long and Maureen Johnson. And I've wanted to read MHI forever (thanks Heath!)...

So, what other books do y'all recommend for light vacation reading?

That is all.

17 comments:

Rabbit said...

Time Enough for Love will be tough to put down, but it'll keep you busy.

You might also consider Heinlein's Friday.

Regards,
Rabbit.

Robb Allen said...

Don't forget, you're supposed to bring me a book!

If you want, I'll give you Friday and Time Enough For Love to take back with you.

TEFL is full of kick-ass stuff, but there's a little too much of a fixation on mother-humping for me ;)

freddyboomboom said...

Heinlein's Glory Road is excellent light reading, in my opinion.

Also, Elizabeth Moon's The Deed of Paksenarrion trade paperback is excellent light reading as well. Since it's a trilogy collected it's not actually light in weight, though. Unless you get the ebook version from Baen....

Andrew said...

MHI is possibly my favorite book ever.

Alan said...

Anything by Heinlein is worth reading. Even his "bad" stuff is still pretty good.

(In my opinion anyone that thinks Heinlein wrote a bad book just didn't understand it.)

Old NFO said...

Heinlein, Asimov, WEB Grifin, Vince Flynn, Balducci, you name em...

Anonymous said...

Own and read two of the three (the Heinlein ones), and I really, really want to read MHI. Been too lazy to buy it at Amazon yet.

Time Enough for Love is... interesting. And To Sail Beyond the Sunset has Pixel in it, so it is far from a complete loss ;).

Christina RN LMT said...

Android's Dream and Agent to the Stars by John Scalzi. Plus his Old Man's War series. If you like space opera, you can never go wrong with Sharon Lee and Steve Miller's Liaden Universe. EPIC!
Enjoy your downtime, Jay!

Heath J said...

Enjoy MHI, bro. I've read it at least 3 times.... Good stuff.

Grossman's book is excellent stuff too, but I wasn't able to pound right through it. Finish that one and then get "On Combat".

doubletrouble said...

"one book on the flight down, one on the flight back"...

Who you kiddin'? By the time you get the young 'uns herded & quieted down, you'll be there.

It's not a flight to China y'know...

Mike W. said...

I'd recommend some stuff by Rand, but that's not really "light"

Jake (formerly Riposte3) said...

Sounds like a good list. Alan is right about Heinlein - even his "bad" stuff is good.

I'd be a little wary about bringing a book titled "On Killing" anywhere near a TSA flunky, though. You might want to save that one for after the trip.

Stretch said...

Have read almost* everything RAH published. Later ones seem disjointed. Probably due to his stoke(s). Could have been well served by judicious editing but at that stage of his career no editor was going to mess with The Master’s words.
I re-read The Moon Is A Harsh Mistress every time a Democrat gets inaugurated.
I give Starship Trooper to every cadet, enlistee or family member coming of age.
Farnham’s Freehold did not age well. Most impressive when read less than 2 years after doing duck and cover drills in elementary school. Now strikes me as stilted but as noted ‘Even his "bad" stuff is still pretty good.’
* Been unable to find Sixth Column. Even the LOC only has it on microfilm. Has been called racist. May explain my difficulty in finding a copy. Doubt it will be re-issued as so many of his others titles have.

Ross said...

Awesome reading list, Jay.

I also recommend Unexpected Consequences by John Ross, The Past Through Tomorrow by Heinlein (it's a compilation of his future history stories) and The Number Of The Beast. Glory Road is always good, too.

For The Boy, may I recommend Have Space Suit, Will Travel and Starman Jones? Great Heinlein for the younger crew (and the older ones, too).

Stretch, check for The Day After Tomorrow - Sixth Column was republished with that title. Failing that, contact me through JayG - I have a spare copy I'd be willing to loan out.

Christina RN LMT said...

Oh, and if you haven't read them yet, you must try the Miles Vorkosigan Adventures by Lois McMaster Bujold!

ZerCool said...

Farnham's Freehold, Glory Road, and The Moon is a Harsh Mistress, all by Heinlein.

Michael Crichton's "Airframe" is great for annoying seat mates.

Anything by W.E.B. Griffin, in particular the "Brothers in Arms" series (The Lieutenants, Captains, Colonels, etc...)

Moe said...

Robert McCammon's Swan Song was a good read.