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May 10, 1999 Criminal Evidence by John C. Klotter "A standard text with solid information. Good collection of judicial decisions."
May 11, 1999 Basic Teachings of the Great Philosophers by S.E. Frost, Jr. "A summary of philosophical views on various topics. Easy to read, but lacks views of recent philosophers like Foucault, Rawls, or McIntyre."
May 11, 1999 Coming of Age in the Milky Way by Timothy Ferris "A truly wonderful book on our understanding of the universe. Well-written, understandable, and fun to read. Full of good quotes. Definitely recommend it to anyone."
May 12, 1999 Heaven by V.C. Andrews "A novel about a 'hill-billy' family and their struggle to keep in touch after their father sells them. An okay book, if somewhat slow-paced."
May 14, 1999 Dark Angel by V.C. Andrews "The sequel to Heaven. Contains none of the tension and drama of its precursor, and the concentration on relationships makes it read like a romance novel. Ending seemed hurried and contrived."
May 16, 1999 Lady Chatterley's Lover by D.H. Lawrence "Classic tale of an English woman's affair. Makes some points about love in an industrialized society--didn't really move me though. Probably more famous for it being banned than for being great literature."
May 16, 1999 Writings on Religion by David Hume "A collection of all of Hume's works on religion. Certainly worth reading."
May 17, 1999 Catch-22 by Joseph Heller "Truly one of, if not the, funniest books I've ever read. Full of disjunctions and contradictions. Almost gets sad near the end."
May 20, 1999 Hard Times by Charles Dickens "A classic indictment of free-market capitalism and especially of reason devoid of emotion. Tells story of a town where only facts are taught and all fancies are suppressed. A very slow-paced book."
May 22, 1999 Billions & Billions by Carl Sagan "Sagan's final book--includes a sad account of his death. A clear summary of issues like global warming, abortion, and the arms race."
May 24, 1999 Sense & Sensibility by Jane Austen "One of the best 'classic' novels I've ever read. The story of two sisters and their romances is told with satire and wit. Smooth reading and the characters are so much like modern people's personalities."
May 26, 1999 The Art of Being Human: The Humanities as a Technique for Living by Richard Paul Janaro & Thelma C. Altshuler "A solid textbook on the humanities, covering music, theatre, movies, philosophy, etc. No discussion of racial or sexual minorities contributions."
May 27, 1999 The Silmarillion by J.R.R. Tolkien "Tells the story of how middle-earth was created and the history of elves, dwarves, & humans. Mostly dry but a few good stories."
May 27, 1999 Eroica by Mara Rostov "A novel about a girl and her neo-Nazi father's plans to destroy Israel. Nothing special."
May 28, 1999 Classical Statements on Faith & Reason edited by Ed L. Miller "A collection of 15 authors' views. Deals more on if faith and reason should bring one to God, rather than if faith is reasonable. Good essays by Locke, Pascal, James, and falsification by Flew."
May 29, 1999 Close Calls edited by Fox Rogers "A collection of lesbian short stories. Very good, especially liked 'Diego & Bob'."
May 31, 1999 A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man by James Joyce "A fictional autobiography of an Irishman in the early 1900s. Episodic. Beautiful use of language."
May 31, 1999 Why I Am Not a Christian by Bertrand Russell "Excellent book! Great essays on religion, ethics, and sexuality. Written with style and wit."
June 2, 1999 Peyton Place by Grace Matalious "Story of scandal in a 'respectable' small town. Shows small towns aren't all they're cracked up to be. Fun to read."
June 7, 1999 Eureka! 81 Key Ideas Explained by Michael Macrone "A useful little book giving short explanations of ideas from Pascal's Wager to the Big Bang."
June 7, 1999 Coming Out: An Act of Love by Rob Eichberg "A book about coming out written by a psychologist. Too much self-help psychobabble, but interesting letters."
June 9, 1999 Conan the Adventurer by Robert E. Howard "A fun collection of Conan stories. Especially liked 'Drurys of Tombalku'."
June 10, 1999 She by H. Rider Haggard "Indiana Jones-like story of a foray into Africa to find an immortal queen. Exciting events, but slow prose. Worth reading though."
June 13, 1999 Mutiny on the Bounty by Charles Nordhoff & James Norman Hall "Story of mutiny and aftermath told in first-person perspective. Odd pacing and focus on events that seem less important. Still somewhat interesting."
June 13, 1999 Red Badge of Courage by Stephen Crane "Story of a boy's first battles in the Civil War. Written from an ironic perspective. Nothing spectacular."
June 14, 1999 Is the Homosexual My Neighbour? by Letna Scanzoni & Virginia Mollenkott "Although 20 years old, a great case for acceptance of gays in Christianity. Clear discussion of everything from Kinsey to Leviticus."
June 15, 1999 Obsession: Life & Times of Calvin Klein by Stephen Gaines & Sharon Churcher "Biography of Klein. Interesting for its details on his gay/bisexual life. Fast-paced."
June 16, 1999 The Rules by Ellen Fein & Sherrie Schneider "A book on how women can get men to marry them. I found it manipulative and sad--the goal of one's life shouldn't be to get married at all costs. Based on dubious assertions."
June 17, 1999 Six Gothic Tales by Various. "A condensation of six stories by Reader's Digest. Gothic in the sense of 19th Century mansions & mystery. Nothing extraordinary."
June 17, 1999 Minorities, Migrants, and Crime edited by Ineke Haen Marshall "A collection of essays on how various countries are affected by crime and relation to minorities. Interesting to note the similarities between countries."
June 21, 1999 Great Expectations by Charles Dickens "Classic mystery of a boy who becomes wealthy. A great plot but didn't really strike me. Worth reading though."
June 22, 1999 Does God Exist? The Debate Between Theists & Atheists by J.P. Moreland & Kai Nielsen "Transcript of debate between famous theist and famous atheist, includes responses by other philosophers. Nielsen's approach is interesting, arguing that concept of God is incoherent & contradictory."
June 23, 1999 Waiting for Godot by Samuel Beckett "Play about two guys waiting for a third. I admit not grasping the deep & symbolic meaning this play must have, other than demonstrating the utter futility of life."
June 26, 1999 A Theory of Justice by John Rawls "A brilliant and thorough argument as to how a society should be structured. Especially important is conception of the original position."
June 27, 1999 Pale Fire by Vladimir Nabokov "A very original book about an insane homosexual's commentary on a poem. Hard to tell just how crazy the guy is. Very funny."
June 28, 1999 Recovery (Star Trek # 73) by J.M. Dillard "I was pleasantly surprised by this book--it was exciting and fast-paced. Kirk & McCoy (during the Lost Years) have to stop an automated ship from crossing into Tholian space.
June 29, 1999 Elfshadow (Harpers # 2) by Elaine Cunningham "An AD&D novel. Very well-written, especially liked the Danilo Thann character."
July 3, 1999 Cormyr by Ed Greenwood & Jeff Grubb "A very fun and informative novel about Cormyr. Alternates a modern-day plot to kill Azoun with chapters of Cormyrean history."
July 4, 1999 The Crystal Star by Vonda N. McIntyre "A Star Wars novel--Jedi twins get kidnapped. Nothing spectacular."
July 10, 1999 Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky "Story of a Russian law student who kills an elderly pawnbroker for somewhat utilitarian reasons. Didn't really move me, but worth reading."
July 11, 1999 Arrogant Capital by Kevin Phillips "About what the author thinks is wrong about current American politics (special interests) and what can be done to fix them. Some interesting solutions but doesn't make enough case for the problems."
July 12, 1999 Secret Books of Paradise III & IV by Tanith Lee "Collection of short stories of Book of Dead & Book of the Mad. First was 'Tales From the Crypt' style, but second was really good."
July 14, 1999 After Virtue by Alasdair MacIntyre "Attempt to ground morality on reformulated Aristotelian concept. Good criticisms of modern philosophy but unconvincing on own side."
July 16, 1999 Discoveries and Opinions of Galileo translated by Stillman Drake "A collection of four of Galileo's briefer works. Chosen for interest to general reader & not scientifically complex. Interesting."
July 17, 1999 k.d. lang by David Bennahum "A biography of vegetarian lesbian k.d. lang. Mostly pictures, not very in-depth. Also, written in 1993 so very out of date."
July 19, 1999 The Federalist Papers by Hamilton, Madison, & Jay "A collection of essays in support of ratification of the Constitution. Definitely worth reading."
July 20, 1999 On Death & Dying by Elisabeth Kubler-Ross "Classic book advocating a humane treatment of terminal patients. Discusses stages of dying, very interesting interviews w/ terminally ill."
July 21, 1999 The Green Mile by Stephen King "Collected edition of King's serial novel about strange happenings on death row. Not ever really scary, but fun to read."
July 22, 1999 1984 by George Orwell "Classic tale of a future where freedom does not exist. Really good book, but also really depressing."
July 24, 1999 Out of the Closets: Voices of Gay Liberation edited by Karla Jay & Allen Young "Collection of writings on gay movement of early 70s. Written from radical Marxist perspective . . . seems somewhat silly now."
July 25, 1999 Awakenings and Selected Stories by Kate Chopin "Story of a woman's realization that she doesn't want to be a wife or mother. Very, very good! Sad, but excellent."
July 28, 1999 Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Dafoe "Classic story of shipwrecked man. Some interesting parts but relentless religious rigamarole turned me off."
July 30, 1999 Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad "Short story about a journey in Africa. Couldn't really grasp the deep significance the story was supposed to have."
August 1, 1999 Far From the Madding Crowd by Thomas Hardy "Story about spunky woman and her choice of suitors in 19th century England. Overly descriptive, but suspenseful and sometimes funny."
August 2, 1999 Concerning Dissent & Civil Disobedience by Abe Fortas "Written for the layman. Conclusions and reasoning not original. Simplistic."
August 3, 1999 Autobiography by John Stuart Mill "Interesting to see his education and his development. Nervous breakdown and wife were influential. Worth reading."
August 5, 1999 Sister Carrie by Theodore Dreiser "Story about a young woman's life as she moves to the city. Smooth, very good portrayal of street life of poor."
August 7, 1999 The Stranger by Albert Camus "Story of an ordinary man who commits a murder. Interesting look at a man with no real feeling."
August 9, 1999 The Jungle by Upton Sinclair "Not just an expose of the meatpacking industry, but a convincing argument for socialism. Well done."
August 10, 1999 The Trial by Franz Kafka "Story of a man's entanglement in the judicial system. Good story, but terrible intro."
August 15, 1999 Law & Justice: An Introduction to the American Legal System by Howard Abadinsky "Decent introduction--nothing extraordinary, but useful."
August 19, 1999 Revolution of Little Girls by Blanche McCrary Boyd "Story of a southern girl & her definitely interesting life. Funny, fast-paced, very good."
August 19, 1999 Terminal Velocity by Blanche McCrary Boyd "Explores lesbianism of star of previous book. Tighter, funny, and somewhat sad. Also very good."
August 22, 1999 Count of Monte-Christo by Alexandre Dumas "Story of a man's imprisonment & vengeance upon his enemies after he escapes. A lot of characters, heavy Christian dogma, still a decent read and sometimes dramatic."
August 22, 1999 The Buffalo Creek Disaster by Gerald M. Stern "Story of a coal-mining company's dam break, which killed hundreds of people, and the law suit that got compensation for the victims. Really interesting look at the trial process."
August 24, 1999 Moll Flanders by Daniel Defoe "Story of a woman who is a whore, thief, incester (?), etc., before finding God & repenting. Story of vice is interesting, but otherwise preachy."
August 25, 1999 Fantastic Voyage by Isaac Asimov "Story of a miniaturized submarine's voyage inside a human body. Fairly entertaining."
August 26, 1999 Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde "Story of a man who sells his soul for youth. Very good! Especially entertaining is philosophy of Lord Henry. Definite homosexual overtones."
August 27, 1999 Girl, Interrupted by Susanna Kayser "A nonfiction recounting of the author's time in a mental institution. Fast reading and entertaining."
August 28, 1999 Welcome to the Monkey House by Kurt Vonnegut, Jr. "Collection of short stories. Many about future. Very funny."
September 1, 1999 Fear & Trembling and the Sickness Unto Death by Soren Kierkegaard "The first is an analysis of Abraham's willingness to sacrifice Isaac. Very interesting. The second is an analysis of how despair relates to sin & faith. Esoteric & confusing."
September 1, 1999 Boys Like Us: Gay Writers Tell Their Coming Out Stories edited by Patrick Merla "26 coming out stories. Some are sad & some are funny but they're all interesting."
September 6, 1999 Stronghold by Melanie Rawn "First book in the fantasy trilogy 'Dragon Star.' Reasonably entertaining, but many of the combat tactics seem unrealistic, like thrice abandoning fortified castles when troop numbers were not overwhelming."
September 7, 1999 Daphne's Book (2nd time) by Mary Downing Hahn "A book I've read before, telling the story of two middle-school friends. Really enjoyed reading it--there's something magical about books for adolescents."
September 17, 1999 Dragon Token by Melanie Rawn "Second in the 'Dragon Star' trilogy. Okay, but nothing really exciting. No characterization of the 'bad guys.' Affair at end was neat."
September 19, 1999 Gay Politics vs. Colorado by Stephen Bransford "Story of Amendment 2 by supporter. Tries to make it an issue of 'special rights' but the hatred is clear."
September 27, 1999 The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton "Look at how pressure of social conformity kept a man from following his heart. Good story, really makes you wish the protagonist had 'seized the day'."
September 28, 1999 User's Guide to the Bluebook by Alan L. Dworsky "Not fascinating reading, but useful."
October 10, 1999 Lure of the Law (2nd time) by Richard W. Moll "Interviews of law students, lawyers, and ex-lawyers to see what they think of the law. Most present a rather dismal view of corporate law."
October 16, 1999 Love Songs of Phoenix Bay by Nisa Donnelly "Story of a lesbian running away from the past and trying to find love. Wow! Truly a great book and worth recommending."
October 23, 1999 Law School Survival by Greg & Shannon Gottesman "Good practical advice on making it through the first year."
November 3, 1999 Silas Marner by George Eliot "Classic novel about a miser who loses his hoard but gains a child and regains his love of God. Didn't really hit me."
November 15, 1999 Becoming a Man: Half a Life Story by Paul Monette "Autobiography of the first decades of famous gay writer. Loved it, hard to stop. Really shows that someone with so much success (Yale, etc.) could be miserable because of the closet."
November 24, 1999 Law and Jurisprudence in American History by Stephen B. Presser & Jamil S. Zainaldin "A thousand-page tome of legal history selections. Certainly informative, though terribly dry in many places. Last two-hundred pages are very interesting though."
November 27, 1999 Selected Stories by Anton Chekov "Collection of Chekhov's shorter works. Deals mostly with Russian peasantry. Sad & funny, good storytelling."
November 28, 1999 Intro to Study & Practice of Law (in a Nutshell) by Kenney Hegland "Humorous intro to law. Good advice on exam taking and interesting discussion of 'espirit de corps' of prosecutor & pub. defenders."
December 4, 1999 Portnoy's Complaint by Philip Roth "Story of a neurotic Jewish man's sexual history. Part about childhood is really funny. Catch-22 was still funnier though."
December 9, 1999 The Magic Mirror by Kermit L. Hall "A succinct synthesis of American legal history. Nothing tremendously exciting or original, but solid. Good bibliographical essay."
December 9, 1999 Simple & Direct by Jacques Barzun "A handbook on good writing. Lots of funny examples, but writing seems to me to come from what feels natural and correct."
December 12, 1999 Bramble Bush by Karl Llewellyn "Classic book on lessons for law students. Good ideas, good focus on broad concepts and understanding of law."
December 12, 1999 Property (4th Edition) by Dukeminier & Krier "Textbook on property law. Useful & interesting notes, but introductory materials to each section could have been better."
December 17, 1999 A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens "Classic book about the French Revolution. First Dickens book I've ever read that I enjoyed. Suspenseful."
December 19, 1999 The Girls Next Door by Lindsy Van Gelder & Pamela Robin Brandt "Authors travel around the country and talk about lesbians they find. Light and fast moving. Enjoyable."
December 24, 1999 The Essential Kant edited by Arnulf Zeig "Selections of Kant's works. Critique of Pure Reason was technical, abstract, and dull. Metaphysics of Morals was interesting."
December 28, 1999 As I Lay Dying by William Faulkner "Story of a family's journey to bury their dead mother. Enjoyed original use of perspective (each chapter from different character's point of view). Ironic ending. Very good."
December 28, 1999 Karl Marx by David McClellan "Short summary of Kant [sic]. Not in-depth but good intro."
December 30, 1999 Hume in 90 Minutes by Paul Strathern "Very useful little book. Biographical info places Hume's writings in context, and helps visualize the man behind the work."
December 30, 1999 Kierkegaard in 90 Minutes by Paul Strathern "Same format as previous. Bio again very useful. Finally understand his idea of existence."
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