Appendix A. Bill's Best Books of 2003 (and 2002)

Appendix A.

Bill’s Best Books of 2003 (and 2002)

1)  “Hagakure - The Book of the Samurai” by Yamamoto Tsunetomo, trans. William Scott Wilson, Kodansha, Tokyo, 1716.    The code of the Samurai and stories about the nature of life.

2)  “Twelve Years a Slave” by Solomon Northup, edited by Sue Eakin and Joseph Logsdon, Louisiana State University Press, Baton Rouge, 1853.   In 1841 Mr Northup, an educated and free Northern Negro, was abducted and sold into Slavery.  This is his story, in his own words, of his true experience and amazing escape.  A testament to human dignity and courage and a stirring record of the depravity of the Slave system.

3)  “The Cosmic Serpent - DNA and the Origins of Knowledge” by Jeremy Narby, Putnam, New York, 1998.   Amazing story of this Biologists encounters with Ayahuasca in the Amazon and his theories about psychic knowledge, hallucinogenic plants, DNA, evolution, world serpent myths, Jacobs ladder, and healing visions.

4)  “Adam, Eve, and the Serpent” by Elaine Pagels, Vintage Books, New York, 1988.  Story of the evolution of the interpretation of the Garden of Eden Myth in the early days of Christianity as narrated in the writings of the early church fathers and other early Christian writers.   Clearly describes the essential role Adam and Eve plays in Christian Theology and Metaphysics.

5) “Run With the Hunted” - a Charles Bukowski Reader, edited by John Martin, Harper Perennial, New York, 1993.   Autobiographical narrative of the life of Charles Bukowski as told in excerpts from his other writings.   

6)  “Septuagenarian Stew - Stories and Poems” by Charles Bukowski, Black Sparrow Press, Santa Rosa, 1990 .   Poems and Stories, written in his 70’s, reflecting on Bukowski’s experiences in life.   Gritty, real, honest, dirty, hard, tough, funny, ironic, drunk, broke, restless, and finally a recognized writer.

7)  “Sifting through the Madness for the Word, the Line, the Way” by Charles Bukowski, Black Sparrow Press, Santa Rosa, 2003.   Posthumous publication of special poems collected throughout life.  He did it again.

8)  “Japanese Cultural encounters & How to Handle Them” by Hiroko C. Kataoka with Tetsuya Kusumoto, Passport Books, Lincolnwood, Illinois, 1991.  Fascinating book describes nature of Japanese relationships and behavior through a series of engaging scenarios and clever interactive format.

9)  “Shinto - The Kami Way” by Sokyo Ono, Tut Books, Rutland, Vermont, 1962.    History and character of the Shinto belief and ceremony.

10)  “The Book of Tea” by Kakuzo Okakura, Shambhala Classics, Boston, 1904.  Classic book explains the nature and philosophy of the Tea Ceremony.  Describes the history of Tea, the classic method of brewing and the importance of the smallest details of the implements and ritual behavior.   Calming and enlightening.

11)  “NTC’s dictionary of Mexican Cultural Code Words” by Boye Lafayette De Mente, NTC Publishing Group, Lincolnwood, Illinois, 1996.  The complete guide to Key Words that express how Mexicans Think, Communicate, and Behave.   Historical and Fascinating.   A must for any student of the language.

12)  “Madrigal’s Magic Key to Spanish” by Margarita Madrigal, Broadway Books, New York, 1951.  Innovative method of learning Spanish that stresses the similarities to English and talking in the past tense.  The only book on the list that I haven’t completely read, but it is so good that I had to include it.  Illustrations by Andy Warhol.

13)  “Dude, Where’s my Country” by Michael Moore, Warner Books, New York, 2003.   Michael Moore skewers G. W. Bush and the War on Terror with amazing documented true stories.   What are we going to do about it?

14)  “Kokology” and “Kokology2 - The Game of Self discovery” by Tadahiko nagao and Isamu Saito, Fireside Book, New York, 1998, 2001.   Amazing series of games helps reveal your true nature and beliefs.  Insightful.

15)  “Culture shock - Korea” by Sonja Vegdahl Hur and Ben Seunghwa Hur, Graphics Arts Center Publishing Company, Portland, 1993.  A Guide of Customs and Etiquette.   Very interesting and educational.   Just one of a whole series on different countries.

16)  “Seeds of Change - The Living Treasure” by Kenny Ausubel, Harper, San Francisco, 1994.  Story of bio diversity, traditional farming methods, heirloom seed stocks and one man’s attempt to found a company to promote heirloom seeds.   The Passionate Story of the Growing Movement to Restore Biodiversity and Revolutionize the Way we Think about Food.

17)  “The Luck Factor” by Dr. Richard Wiseman, Miramax books, New York, 2003.  Changing your luck, changing your life: The four Essential Principles.   Insightful and inspirational look at the nature of Luck and how you can maximize it!   Highly recommended.

18)  “Sex Money Kiss” by Gene Simmons, New Millenium Press, 2003.  Honest, straight ahead, no-nonsense philosophy of Life and Success by self made entrepreneur and Rock Star, Gene Simmons of Kiss.   Required reading for every eighteen year old boy.

19)  “The Geography of Thought:  How Westerners and Asians Think Differently, and Why” by Richard Nisbett, Free Press, 2003.  Based on actual studies. 

20)  “Choose Cost Rica” by John Howells, Gateway Books, Oakland, 1994.   A guide to retiring in Costa Rica.   The nature of the people, country, customs, and lifestyle.

21)  “You Are Being Lied To - The Disinformation guide to Media Distortion, Historical Whitewashes and Cultural Myths“, edited by Russ Kick, the Disinformation Company, New York, 2001.  Documented exposes on many current events: John McCain, Jimmy Carter, Al Gore, The Rabin Murder, AA, Environmentalism, and Forbidden Archaeology.

22)  “Everything You Know is Wrong - The Disinformation Guide to Secrets and Lies“, edited by Russ Kick, Disinformation Company, New York, 2002.   Documented exposes on many current events: The Vatican Bank, The European Union, Columbine, Mad Cow disease, The Ludlow Massacre and more.

23)  “Abuse Your Illusions - The disinformation Guide to Media Mirages and Establishment Lies“, Edited by Russ Kick, Disinformation Company, New York, 2003.  Iraq, the Drug War, The Warren Report, Racial Profiling, Terrorism, Panama, The United Nations, and Islam.

24)  “The Marriage of Heaven and Hell” by William Blake, circa 1800.  Exposition on the truth of life and Religion by the famous English Mystic.

25)  “The Gnostics” by Jacques LaCarriere, Trans. By Nina Rootes, City Lights, San Francisco, 1973, 1977.  Shocking and poetic essay on the beliefs and practices of the ancient Heretics, the Gnostics.

26)  “Codes, Ciphers, and Secret Writing” by Martin Gardner, Dover Publications, New York, 1972.  Fun exploration of Cryptography and Cryptology from the venerable mathematics writer, Martin Gardner.

27)  “Gods, Graves and Scholars” by C. W. Ceram, Trans. By E. B. Garside and Sophie Wilkins, Vintage, New York, 1950.   A little dated, but still a fascinating story of the history of Archaeology and the civilizations that were uncovered.  An amazing true life detective story and fortune hunt through history.

28)  “Labyrinths of Reason -  Paradox, Puzzles and the Fraility of Knowledge“, by William Poundstone, Anchor Press, New York, 1988.   Amazing series of articles on knowledge and truth.  I especially liked chapter 10 on Meaning, The Voynich Manuscript, and Cryptography.

29)  “The Color Curtain a Report on the Bandung Conference, by Richard Wright, Banner Books, 1956, 1995.  Report on the famous 1955 conference in Indonesia.  A discourse on racial prejudices, white colonial racism and conference highlights.

30)  “Free Play - Improvisation in Life and Art” by Stephen Nachmanovitch, Jeremy P. Tarcher, Los Angeles, 1990.  Brilliant exposition on creativity.

31)  “Lakota Woman by Mary Crow Dog and Richard Erdoes“,  Harper Perennial, New York, 1991.   True story of the Lakota woman joined with AIM in the 70’s and gave birth during the second seige at Wounded Knee in the 1970’s.   A vivid portrayal of a dynamic and eventful young life on and off the Sioux Indian Reservation. 

32)  “A Book of Surrealist Games, compiled by Mel Gooding“, Redstone Press, London, 1991.  Historical and fun play with real surrealist techniques and games.   Includes the exquisite corpse, automatism, frottage, collage, chain games, and more!

33)  “Seven Dada Manifestos and Lampisteries” by Tristan Tzara, John Calder, London, 1963, 1977.  Brilliant collection of “nonsense” writing by the ring leader of the Dada Art Movement.

34)  “Stoke’s Hummingbird Book” by Donald and Lillian Stokes, Little, Brown, and company, Boston, 1989.  The Complete Guide to Attracting Identifying and Enjoying Hummingbirds.  Big format book with nice color photographs.   Very readable with nice maps of territories.  Concise and Complete.

35)  “A Brief History of Time - From the Big Bang to Black Holes” by Stephen W. Hawking, Bantam Books, Toronto, 1988.   Classic Physics book for the layman on the origin of the universe.

36)  “Platonic and Archimedian Solids” by Daud Sutton, Wooden Books, New York, 2002.   Fun book explores the geometry of platonic solids and other polyhedra.

37)  “ A little Book of Coincidence” by John Martineau, Wooden Books, New York, 2001.  The elegant and simple mathematical relationships of the planets, the earth and the moon.