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Christmas Ideas for Joe

Headphones

I’d like a good set of headphones, to listen to in the office. My current pick is the AKG K545 closed-back, over the ear headphones, for $200.

Slippers

Haflinger AT slippers, size 41 (US men’s size 8). Reviews say that have great “comfort, warmth, and moisture wicking compared to top competitors. And they get better and better the more you wear them in. Made of boiled wool, they’re soft but not stifling, super comfy, easy to keep clean.”

Books

There are many books that I buy right away because I want to read them right away. But there are other books that I want to add to my long term collection. These I don’t buy right away but I would enjoy getting them as gifts. (And, yes, I do want Kindle editions of everything. If you buy me a print edition of any of these books, it is very unlikely that I’ll ever read it.)

My Current Top Picks

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Miscellaneous Books

Here’s The Guardian on the new edition.

Rapunzel is impregnated by her prince, the evil queen in Snow White is the princess’s biological mother, plotting to murder her own child, and a hungry mother in another story is so “unhinged and desperate” that she tells her daughters: “I’ve got to kill you so I can have something to eat.” Never before published in English, the first edition of the Brothers Grimms’ tales reveals an unsanitised version of the stories that have been told at bedtime for more than 200 years.

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Robert Alter’s Bible translations

Robert Alter has been on a one man mission to translate the entire Hebrew Bible into English. The twist is that he’s not doing the translations as Scripture. Instead, he’s doing them as Literature, seeking to restore the rhythm, emotion, and clarity of the original texts. His translations are heavily footnoted, giving extra information on the cultural background, political currents, social tensions, and language ambiguities of the originals.

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Discworld Series

Discworld is a comic fantasy book series written by the English writer Terry Pratchett, set on the fictional Discworld, a flat disc balanced on the backs of four elephants which, in turn, stand on the back of a giant turtle, Great A’Tuin. The books frequently parody, or at least take inspiration from J. R. R. Tolkien, Robert E. Howard, H. P. Lovecraft and William Shakespeare, as well as mythology, folklore and fairy tales, often using them for satirical parallels with current cultural, political and scientific issues.

A reading guide may come in handy.

Rincewind Novels

Witches Novels

Ancient Civilizations

Death Novels

Watch Novels

Industrial Revolution Novels

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Historical Interest

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Tolkien

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Milton Friedman

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C. S. Lewis

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Physical Books That I Want an eBook For

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