[Easy 6]

United Nations Journal - William F. Buckley Jr, this book only confirmed my deep suspicion that 90% of the time, the UN is a worthless organization. Lots of hot air gets expelled, but little usually comes of it. When they finally do try to stop some kind of madness going on across the world, their people are chased around & killed just like the refugees they're there to protect. A huge, lurching & usually useless bureaucracy. It had a few interesting little bits about Kissinger & Nixon, but i wouldnt really recommend it. It'll only confirm your worst feelings about the UN.

ROTTEN - John Lydon, great read on a pivotal band. You get the unvarnished story from long before the beginning to the end. He squashes a lot of fandoms long held beliefs, like Malcolm McClaren being the 'spiritual' inspiration of the band, he talks in much detail of what a piece of untrue junk 'Sid & Nancy' was (though he's a big Gary Oldman fan), he dismisses any notion that the Pistols were influenced in any way by the Ramones, whom he didnt like at all which surprised me a lot, i figured they were regarded as spiritual brothers from across the pond, i sensed a bit of jealousy over the subject. Its a kick to read about how everyone thought doing a tour in the southern US would be a disaster & might even get them killed, instead he says he absolutely loved it & that the southerners were the friendliest people he's yet to meet in the US. He developed his persona around Sir Laurence Oliviers portrayal of Richard the III, just over the top ego & madness. Great, great read... i'm gonna put some Pistols in the video thread tonight.

Iceman:Confessions of a Mafia Killer - I'm sure many here have seen atleast one of the HBO specials on him & i'd seen two of them, but like anything, the book is always better, filled with much more detail & answers a lot more questions. This guy was incredible, in a very evil way. He was the Italian mafias premiere contract killer, even sent overseas on numerous occasions. His favorite method of killing was to take his mark to a deserted cave in Pennsylvania that was infested with giant rats, he would tie the guy up, cut or shoot him just enough to draw blood & get the smell of it in the air, set up a video cam on a tripod with a motion sensor then leave. When he'd come back, there was usually nothing left but a stain on the floor, even the bones were dragged away. He'd record it for the satisfaction of whoever ordered the hit & they'd sit & watch it together, he usually used this method when he was told the guy had to suffer. He also perfected a way of mixing cyanide with another chemical, putting it in a spray bottle & shooting a guy in the face with it, one shot of that mist would kill within seconds every single time, the guy was beyond diabolical. Another wily trick, was to give a guys car a flat then just walk up on him... i'll always be wary of flat tires from now on. He got away with this for over 20 years, he'd often go into the city (NY) & kill just for sport, or to try out a new weapon, like the totally innocent of anything guy he nailed in the head with a mini high power crossbow. I know for a fact several storylines for the Sopranos were lifted directly from this book or tweaked a bit, he was a Jersey guy that started out with the DeCavalcante family, whom the Sopranos are modeled after. This book is crazy good, crazy scary. Wanna know what really happened to Jimmy Hoffa? this guy helped do the hit, go get the book.

Empire of the Sun - J.G. Ballard, another incredible true story of a 10 year old English boy who's dad was a diplomat in Shanghai in the years leading up to WWII. This 10 year old was seperated from his family when the Japanese marched in & took the city over, destroying an American warship in the process & spent many years on his own in pow camps. Its simply amazing how smart, gutsy & resourceful a 10 year old can be, i dont know if i would have made it. I practically ran out of the house to rent the movie when i finished this book, sad to say... it was a pretty big disappointment. While the locations, period clothes etc were all top notch, Spielberg took more liberty with the story than i think i've ever seen, when a book is put on screen. So if you liked the movie, do yourself a favor, go get the book & get the real story.