Books

At some point (probably when I'm back home and can see my books in front of me so I can easily reference them for you - i.e. with authors), I'm going to get the time to do these pages justice....until then, here's a small sampling

Favorites (all genres)

WHO IS JOHN GALT? Read Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand to find out. Every survey ever done by the Library of Congress, Amazon.com, etc. places this book at the second most influential book in history (behind the Bible - which is ironic because Rand was an atheist, and so is much of the book). Her ideas have developed into a philosophy known as "Objectivism," which emphasizes human potential, self-reliance, a libertarian-ish conservatism, freedom, capitalism, and the importance of free market forces. Many highly influential people in government - including Alan Greenspan - are "inner circle" devotees. The book is written in the style of a novel, using dramatic characters to convey her ideas. Rand was a Russian girl who was nine years old during the Bolshevik Revolution, and her family had previously been successful pharmacists. Thus, they were class enemies to the new communist state. She witnessed and was a victim of many crimes in the name of class envy and class warfare before she fled at age 19 to America. Her experiences instilled in her a deep love of freedom and the capitalism that is a vital part of that freedom. Atlas Shrugged communicates that with a brilliant and engrossing writing style, making her the best capitalism apologist of this century. I carried a big hardback version up Mt. Kenya with me because I was too involved in it to leave it behind.

Casca, the Eternal Mercenary by Barry Sadler. The first of a series of 25 books about Barry Sadler's version of the legendary Casca Longinus - who is reputed to have been the Roman soldier who pierced the side of Christ. In Sadler's books, Casca is made immortal by Christ until His Second Coming, saying "soldier, you are content with what you are...so shall you remain until I return." Of course, that was over 2,000 years ago, so Casca has roamed the Earth as a soldier since then. He's had 2,000 years to build his skills and his ageless body and he's depicted in many interesting and historically pivotal settings - like when the Toltec try to sacrifice him and can't and so revere him as their legendary Feathered Serpent God Quetza. Thus, Casca is - in the fourth century - set up as the reason that Cortez is seen by the Aztecs as a RETURN of the Quetza in the fifteenth century.

What I like about these books is the well-done coordination of imagination with historical accuracy. You hear terms that you don't read about in history books but - when you look them up - you find that these terms are accurate. In this way, it expands your knowledge of the past. I very much enjoy the vivid descriptions of ancient times to which Sadler adheres. He was a Green Beret (Special Forces) soldier himself, and his own life is worthy of a book in its own right. He's most famous for writing the Vietnam era #1 hit "The Ballad of the Green Beret" and lived his last days as a mercenary and arms dealer in Guatemala before going into a coma after a suspicious, "self-inflicted" gunshot wound in the back of a taxi with a dangerous woman. He has since died, but other authors have taken up the writing of the character.

These books (and his others) are now long since out of print, and collecting them is like a very challenging Easter Egg hunt. I used to find them on the shelves of book stores very rarely, but for a good ten years they have been impossible to find even at huge used book stores at places like Ft. Bragg. I could get them all at Amazon.com for about $20 plus dollars each, but that takes the fun out of finding them! Currently, author Tony Roberts of the U.K. is writing the series. I get my copies of the books directly from him and have a regular correspondence with him. I have 1-21 and #25 (out of 25) (with several duplicates if you are interested in one) and hope to have all 25 someday. Should have bought the whole set in 1989 when I was at Bragg the first time and they were all there on the shelf at the Post X-change! It would probably be just as fun to receive them in the mail as unexpected gifts, though ;-) I was born on July 10!

Find Out More and start collecting your own books at the Official Casca Website ( www.casca.net ) run by the current author Tony Roberts

Favorite Books and Periodicals by Genre

Still have not done justice to this section. Someday I will have Amazon links to all the books I like the best