Summer Reading Ideas

I recently wrote this as recommendations for good books for a trip:

Reading is all about what's right FOR a person. Not knowing you well, difficult to say.

However, one of the best science fiction books I've read in years is "Old Man's War" by John Scalzi (sp?). If you liked Heinlein (best: 'To Sail Beyond the Sunset", "Stranger in a Strange Land", or "Have Spacesuit Will Travel"... Or perhaps "Starship Troopers" which was 100x better than the movie), or Asimov (best: "Caves of Steel"), you'll like Old Man's War.

If you're more into NonFiction, "The World Is Flat" is good despite being several years old. "Eat the Rich" is very funny and an excellent economics bit told with lots of jokes and irreverent humor.

"Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" is fantastically funny science fiction, again 100x better than the movie.

I recently read a thing called The J Curve which has completely changed my understanding of international politics, talking about how countries behave in general terms, and evolve from autocracies to pluralistic democracies, or NOT, as the case may be. Feel free to skim, this has great parts and boring bits, but it's worth skimming to get there.

I was traveling in Europe many years ago and found a copy of Rob Roy, which was great reading on the trains. Long, yet very engaging.

Anything by Mark Twain makes great reading for travel - easy to put down and pick up again.

All in all, your best bet is a librarian, someone older who's been there a while. Tell them what you've read and liked, and be honest. My mother in law is a librarian, and she is one of the least judgemental people I know. She's found me great books, because she knows my taste and can match books to it.