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Vaclav Smil

Czech-Canadian scientist and policy analyst studying energy, environment, food and technical change; Distinguished Professor Emeritus, University of Manitoba.

14 things

Personal Narrative of a Pilgrimage to al-Madinah & MeccahBook Richard F. Burton

loved

This spring I re-read again Burton’s great two-volume classic of a pilgrimage to Mecca (R. F. Burton: Personal Narrative of a Pilgrimage to al-Madinah & Meccah ), one of the greatest, and the most informed travelogues ever written.

His summer reading recommendations, written for Gates Notes and reposted on his site

2012-07-06·vaclavsmil.com ↗

Moby-DickBook Herman Melville

loved

But there is one book I have been rereading (usually large random chunks of it, not cover to cover) once every 12 to 18 months for decades: Melville's Moby Dick (1851), for its inimitable combination of sublime and mundane, poetic and scientific, thrill and repose.

American Scientist 'Scientists' Nightstand' interview about his reading, reposted on his site

2006-09-01·vaclavsmil.com ↗

The First CircleBook Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn

loved

Emotionally, I was much taken by Solzhenitsyn's First Circle (Harper & Row, 1968), the book I could not read as a citizen of the westernmost province of the Soviet Empire and read in the original right after we came to Pennsylvania in 1969.

American Scientist 'Scientists' Nightstand' interview about his reading, reposted on his site

2006-09-01·vaclavsmil.com ↗

Zuleika DobsonBook Max Beerbohm

liked

Another enjoyable re-read was Beerbohm's playful Zuleika story (M. Beerbohm: Zuleika Dobson ).

His summer reading recommendations, written for Gates Notes and reposted on his site

2012-07-06·vaclavsmil.com ↗

The Passage of PowerBook Robert Caro

liked

Decades ago I was impressed by Caro’s first volume of Lyndon Johnson biography: this year came out a no-less readable latest instalment ( R. Caro: The Passage of Power ).

His summer reading recommendations, written for Gates Notes and reposted on his site

2012-07-06·vaclavsmil.com ↗

OverpotentialBook M.N. Eisler

liked

I have also appreciated Eisler’s sobering history of fuel cells falling short of their repeatedly exaggerated promise (M.N. Eisler: Overpotential )

His summer reading recommendations, written for Gates Notes and reposted on his site

2012-07-06·vaclavsmil.com ↗

The Snows of YesteryearBook Gregor von Rezzori

recommended

New, and highly recommended, first-time readings have included von Rezzori (G. von Rezzori: The Snows of Yesteryear and G. von Rezzori: Memoirs of an Anti-Semite ) and Crace (J. Crace: Continent ), and Jean Renoir’s memories of his father (J. Renoir: Renoir, My Father ).

His summer reading recommendations, written for Gates Notes and reposted on his site

2012-07-06·vaclavsmil.com ↗

Memoirs of an Anti-SemiteBook Gregor von Rezzori

recommended

New, and highly recommended, first-time readings have included von Rezzori (G. von Rezzori: The Snows of Yesteryear and G. von Rezzori: Memoirs of an Anti-Semite ) and Crace (J. Crace: Continent ), and Jean Renoir’s memories of his father (J. Renoir: Renoir, My Father ).

His summer reading recommendations, written for Gates Notes and reposted on his site

2012-07-06·vaclavsmil.com ↗

ContinentBook Jim Crace

recommended

New, and highly recommended, first-time readings have included von Rezzori (G. von Rezzori: The Snows of Yesteryear and G. von Rezzori: Memoirs of an Anti-Semite ) and Crace (J. Crace: Continent ), and Jean Renoir’s memories of his father (J. Renoir: Renoir, My Father ).

His summer reading recommendations, written for Gates Notes and reposted on his site

2012-07-06·vaclavsmil.com ↗

Renoir, My FatherBook Jean Renoir

recommended

New, and highly recommended, first-time readings have included von Rezzori (G. von Rezzori: The Snows of Yesteryear and G. von Rezzori: Memoirs of an Anti-Semite ) and Crace (J. Crace: Continent ), and Jean Renoir’s memories of his father (J. Renoir: Renoir, My Father ).

His summer reading recommendations, written for Gates Notes and reposted on his site

2012-07-06·vaclavsmil.com ↗

Is China Buying the World?Book Peter Nolan

recommended

And among the books on global economy I must recommend Nolan’s look at China and the world (P. Nolan: Is China Buying the World? ).

His summer reading recommendations, written for Gates Notes and reposted on his site

2012-07-06·vaclavsmil.com ↗

IstanbulBook Orhan Pamuk

read

Right now I am in the middle of Orhan Pamuk's Istanbul (Knopf, 2005).

American Scientist 'Scientists' Nightstand' interview about his reading, reposted on his site

2006-09-01·vaclavsmil.com ↗

The Rotters' ClubBook Jonathan Coe

read

Jonathan Coe: The Winshaw Legacy (Knopf, 1995), The Rotters' Club (Viking, 2001), The House of Sleep (Knopf, 1998)

American Scientist 'Scientists' Nightstand' interview: the books he read in summer 2006

2006-09-01·vaclavsmil.com ↗

Midaq AlleyBook Naguib Mahfouz

read

Naguib Mahfouz: Midaq Alley (Heinemann Educational, 1975), Children of the Alley (Doubleday, 1996), Akhenaten (Anchor Books, 2000)

American Scientist 'Scientists' Nightstand' interview: the books he read in summer 2006

2006-09-01·vaclavsmil.com ↗

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The verdict is what they actually said: loved and liked are explicit; recommended means they told others to get it; uses means they only say they use it; read is a book on their public shelf with no verdict; mixed and disliked are kept too.

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