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Books, movies and music that nourish body and soul
<ART AND MUSIC> <AUDIO AND VIDEO> <BIOGRAPHY AND MEMOIR> <ECONOMICS> <ESSAYS AND CRAZY POLEMIC> <FICTION> <HISTORY> <MAKING MONEY> <PHILOSOPHY> <POLITICS AND CURRENT EVENTS> <PSYCHOLOGY> <REFERENCE> <SCIENCE> <SELF-HELP AND PRIVACY>
The Solti Collection - Beethoven: Symphony No. 9 Ode to Joy. "This is the music that comes to mind when we read about the concertos of Richard Halley in Ayn Rand's Atlas Shrugged," says Chris Brown. "The poem sung in the famous final movement is authored by Schiller, the dramatist in whom Rand sensed 'an enormous hero worship.' " CD. GET IT
Beethoven: Symphony No. 9 Choral / Karajan. A version of Symphony No. 9 that is also recommended. GET IT
Beethoven Symphony No. 3 "Eroica"; Egmont Overture. "The title says it all: 'Heroic,' " says Chris Brown. "Often regarded as the work in which Beethoven officially broke with Classicism and found his own Romantic voice, many were scandalized when it was first performed--too emotional, people thought." This may have been the work H.L. Mencken had in mind when he said of Beethoven: "His emotions at their highest level were almost godlike. He gave music a sort of Alpine grandeur." Recording by Sir Georg Solti and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. CD. GET IT
Beethoven: The Nine Symphonies. "Each of Beethoven's symphonies is a treasure...so why not just grab them all?" Chris Brown wants to know. "Grand, bombastic, triumphant music with almost zilch malevolence. Difficult struggle at times, yes. Defeat? Never!" By Sir Georg Solti and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. CD. GET IT
Chopin Piano Concerto No. 1 and No. 2. "This CD features amazing performances of both these works," says Chris Brown. A live recording of Krystian Zimmerman on piano and conducting the Polish Festival Orchestra. CD. GET IT
Dvorak Symphony No. 9 "From the New World". "America inspired this magnificent symphony, which evokes images of the American West. It is thematically related to Beethoven's Ninth Symphony, but in a decidedly American musical dialect that recalls the best of Aaron Copeland. A phenomenal recording by Sir Georg Solti and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra."--Chris Brown. CD. GET IT
Pavarotti's Opera Made Easy – My Favorite Puccini. "A great introduction to opera in general and to Puccini in particular. Luciano Pavarotti includes all the obligatory Puccini 'standards' as well as some very good but lesser known arias. Generally, best-of CDs take material out of context, but not this series. And Pavarotti does know his opera, having sung the lead tenor role of almost every opera in the repertoire!"--Chris Brown. CD. GET IT
Puccini: La Boheme - Complete. After a performance of La Boheme in the 1960s, Ayn Rand exclaimed, "I haven't seen it since Russia--and I've always loved it so. It's wonderful!" GET IT
Puccini: La Boheme - Highlights. Cheaper, streamlined version. Conducted by Sir Georg Solti, with Placido Domingo and Sherrill Milnes. CD. GET IT
Rachmaninoff Piano Concerto No. 2. Possibly Ayn Rand's favorite piece of music, the Concerto No. 2, premiered in 1901 to rave reviews. CD. GET IT.
Rachmaninoff Symphony No. 2
. The composer's most popular orchestral work, first performed in St. Petersburg in 1908. Declares Chris Brown: "The second and fourth movements are merry, soaring, and jubilant; the first and the third are wonderfully contemplative. Rachmaninoff's opulent melodies shine through. This recording also showcases a stellar performance by Eugene Ormandy and the Philadelphia Orchestra, and includes the brief Isle of the Dead." CD. GET IT.
Sgambati/Rheinberger: Piano Concertos. We can't find the recording of "Giovanni Sgambati, Piano Concerto In C Minor, op. 15" that Roy A. Childs, Jr. praises as "[uniting] two of the greatest discoveries of today's 'Romantic Revival': the dynamic piano concerto of the neglected Italian Romantic composer Giovanni Sgambati, and the flamboyant pianism of the brilliant 58-year-old Cuban-born pianist, Jorge Bolet." So get this CD with Sgambati, Rheinberger, and pianist Bolet instead. It too has Opus 15. Roy says that Bolet's approach to pianism "combines the most dramatic and spontaneous thundering with a sensitively poetic coaxing of sounds from the piano.... You owe it to yourself to experience the pleasure of this music; it is dramatic, alive, exciting." GET IT.
Tchaikovsky Piano Concerto No. 1. "Completed in 1875, the Concerto No. 1 was initially declared unplayable by the director of the Moscow Conservatory to whom Tchaikovsky first showed it. The heroic first movement mentioned by Rand gives way to the contemplative second, and finally a merry third. This is a live recording of the Berlin Philharmonic led by one of the greatest conductors, Herbert Von Karajan. The recording also includes lovely piano pieces by Alexander Scriabin."--Chris Brown. CD. GET IT
Tchaikovsky Symphony No. 6. The composer's last work, performed just before his death in 1893. "The structure is patterned after the life of a person. The first movement plays out variations on a beautiful, confident melody. The second and third are lively, the third in particular resembling a triumphant march. The fourth movement, representing death, is lovely if a bit melancholy."--Chris Brown. CD. GET IT
Verdi: Rigoletto – Highlights. Based on the Victor Hugo play "The King Amuses Himself." Includes the familiar and rousing "La Donna e Mobile" and other melodies both light-hearted and tragic. CD. GET IT
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AUDIO AND VIDEO
The Prisoner, Patrick McGoohan. Are you a number or a free man? Find the answer--maybe--in one of the most interesting and independent-minded television shows ever made. GET IT
24 - Season One, Robert Cochran, creator; Keifer Sutherland, star. Complete set of 6 DVDs videos. “24” is the story of agent Jack Bauer, who must pull an all-nighter to keep terrible things from happening. Each hour of the show is an hour in “real time.” The suspense is non-stop and production values are high. GET IT
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BIOGRAPHY AND MEMOIR
A Life Against the Grain, Julian L. Simon. There's no better angle. GET IT
The Passion of Ayn Rand, Barbara Branden. The story of a woman who said she would do it her way. And did. GET IT
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ECONOMICS
Capitalism: A Treatise on Economics, George Reisman. Thrilling. Combines acute economic reasoning with a luminously rationalistic philosophical perspective, yielding insights into the ways and wherefores of economic life available nowhere else. GET IT
Economics in One Lesson, Henry Hazlitt. Learn your lesson: there's a relationship between cause and effect. GET IT
Human Action, Ludwig von Mises. Everything you ever wanted to know about how markets work but didn't know enough to ask. Mises's magnum opus. GET IT
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A Mencken Chrestomathy, H.L. Mencken. Essays that singe and sing. If you can read just one book this century, this would be one of the top ten. Smart, witty, fun. Skip it, though, if you're a big fan of Thorstein Veblen or William Jennings Bryan. GET IT
The Cluetrain Manifesto: The End of Business as Usual by Christopher Locke et al. Offers a somewhat over-pitched but intriguing vision, written before the dot-com bust, of what we might reconfabulate markets now that the Internet is here. A good "yes-but" book. GET IT
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FICTION
Atlas Shrugged, Ayn Rand. The story of a man who said he would stop the motor of the world. And did. Also the story of a woman who has a whiny lout for a brother. Her boyfriend also has quite a dysfunctional family. GET IT
The Fountainhead, Ayn Rand. The story of a man who said he would do it his way. And did. GET IT
Jane Eyre, Charlotte Bronte. A woman of quiet but fierce independence learns who is hidden in the attic. A more readable novel than the perhaps more-famous Wuthering Heights, authored by Charlotte's sister, Emily. Although some prefer Emily. GET IT.
Martin Eden, Jack London. In many ways a tragic version of Howard Roark’s story in The Fountainhead. Eden is a book-ignorant but street-smart sailor who becomes a successful writer by sheer force of will, and despite the antagonism of almost everyone close to him. GET IT
Hulk: the Incredible Guide, Tom DeFalco. "Created with unlimited access to the Marvel comic archives, The Incredible Guide traces the legend of the Hulk's entire career since the character was created 40 years ago." GET IT
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HISTORY
A History of the American People, Paul Johnson. This Brit says America is pretty much the greatest country on earth, a "human achievement without parallel." Who are we to argue? GET IT
Modern Times, Paul Johnson. Think you know what happened during the twentieth century? Hah. Read this masterwork and think again. GET IT
The Real Lincoln: A New Look at Abraham Lincoln, His Agenda, and an Unnecessary War, Thomas J. DiLorenzo. Was Lincoln the Darth Vader of his day? GET IT
Worlds at War, Ralph Raico. Two audio cassettes. An historian sketches behind-the-scenes political scheming by Europe and the U.S. before World War II and America's entry into the war. GET IT
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MAKING MONEY
The New Scrooge Investing: The Bargain Hunter's Guide to Thrifty Investments, Super Discounts, Special Privileges, and Other Money-Saving Tips, Third Edition, Mark Skousen. In other words, buy low, sell high. GET IT
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PHILOSOPHY
Philosophy: Who Needs It, Ayn Rand. You do. Here's why. GET IT
A History of Philosophy, Frederick Copleston. Catch up on all that philosophy through the ages you've missed with these mammoth, comprehensive, authoritative volumes. GET IT
The Evidence of the Senses: A Realist Theory of Sense Perception, David Kelley. We can see! We can see! GET IT
POLITICS AND CURRENT EVENTS
For a New Liberty, Murray N. Rothbard. Billed as a "libertarian manifesto," this accessible work is actually an anarchist manifesto. GET IT
Law's Order: What Economics Has To Do with Law and Why It Matters, David Friedman. Explains why laws often make things worse instead of better. GET IT
Lost Rights, James Bovard. Houston, we have a problem. GET IT
The Market For Liberty, Linda Tannehill and Morris Tannehill.
The first book-length libertarian case for the anarchist society. "Will stimulate and challenge your thinking on a whole range of issues," says Roy A. Childs Jr. GET IT
The Structure of Liberty, Randy E. Barnett. Described by Jim Powell as "a sophisticated case for a private, competitive legal system which would let people choose the best agencies to protect their rights." GET IT
Who Rules America, Eric O'Keefe. If you think you know how the political class has managed to destroy our freedoms with virtual impunity, think again. GET IT
PSYCHOLOGY
The Psychology of Self-Esteem, Nathaniel Branden. Branden's first book in psychology offers a brilliant theory of what makes the self potent. Plus a fascinating discussion of free will versus determinism and other philosophical issues. GET IT
The Evidence of the Senses: A Realist Theory of Sense Perception, David Kelley. We can see! We can see! GET IT
REFERENCE
A History of Philosophy, Frederick Copleston. Catch up on all that philosophy through the ages you've missed with these mammoth, comprehensive, authoritative volumes. GET IT
A New Dictionary of Quotations, H.L. Mencken. Quotations organized by subject --and picked as only Mencken can pick 'em! Who said "Compromise makes a good umbrella but a poor roof"? GET IT
SCIENCE
The Satanic Gases, Patrick J. Michaels and Robert C. Balling. Think the threat of "global warming" means it's time to pack up industrial civilization and go home? Peruse some info about atmosphere and climate first. GET IT
The End of Privacy, Charles J. Sykes. Tells the story "of citizens who have had their conversations monitored, movements spied upon, medical and financial records accessed, sexual preferences revealed, homes invaded, possessions confiscated, and even lives threatened--all in the name of some alleged higher social or governmental good."--Laissez Faire Books. GET IT
Looking Out For #1, Robert J. Ringer. A book that tells you how to stop sobbing and start doing. A lot more sensible, fun and forthright than most stuff that passes for self-helping. GET IT
How to Be Invisible, J.J. Luna. Advice from a man who had to learn to be invisible in Franco's Spain. Do you know what is the one thing you must never do if you wish to achieve a bare-bones level of privacy? GET IT
More books about privacy, including No Place to Hide and National Identification Regimes. GET THEM
The Ultimate T-Shirt Book: Creating Your Own Unique Designs, Deborah Morgenthal. "No one need ever wear plain T-shirts again thanks to this aptly named book....The author covers in some detail T-shirt selection, preparation, materials, and safety tips."--Library Journal GET IT
<ART AND MUSIC> <AUDIO AND VIDEO> <BIOGRAPHY AND MEMOIR> <ECONOMICS> <ESSAYS AND CRAZY POLEMIC> <FICTION> <HISTORY> <MAKING MONEY> <PHILOSOPHY> <POLITICS AND CURRENT EVENTS> <PSYCHOLOGY> <REFERENCE> <SCIENCE> <SELF-HELP AND PRIVACY>
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