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Whatcha readin now? (book, books, reading, read) (2 Viewers)

Born to Run said:
facook said:
Now on to So Brave, Young, and Handsome by Leif Enger.
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How's it reading so far? This one is sitting high on my Next to be Read list, but has not made it to the top yet. Looking for an excuse to give it a nudge.
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I only read two pages last night... :lmao: I'm sick, and crashed.But even in those two pages, Enger displayed the easy and almost lyrical writing style I liked so much in Peace Like a River. I also love the way he weaves matters of faith into his writing without being heavy-handed about it.

 
Currently reading The Good Soldiers by David Finkel. About a battalion that went over specifically for the surge in Iraq and the ####hole they were dumped in to. Really good read. I just finished a the chapter where the Lieutenant Colonel in charge went back on leave to visit some of his wounded soldiers in the Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio, TX. This is where a lot of the severely burned and multiple amputations go for recovery. Incredible part of the book.

The most severely wounded was Duncan Crookston. During September of 2008 he was riding in a humvee that was hit with an EFP (explosively formed projectile which are incredibly nasty devices designed solely to slice through armor). The EFP immediately severed both of his legs, his right arm, his left hand and the resulting fire took his lips, ears, eyelids and burned pretty much his entire body with 2nd and 3rd degree burns. To say it was a miracle that he survived the initial explosion is an understatement. Only 2 other personal, at the time, had ever survived with those kind of injuries. Crookston was not expected to live but after 30 surgeries the doctors simply quit telling his wife & mother what his chances were. They all agreed that he was a living miracle at that point and simply hoped for the best every time an operation happened. The chapter details the visit and what life was like for his new 19 year old wife and mother who had lived at the facility for the last 6 months 24/7 caring for Duncan. The Lieutenant Colonel returns to Iraq and two days in received an email from Duncan's mother that he had died. Duncan Crookston was 19 when he died, he got married 6 weeks before he left for Iraq.

I don't typically tear up reading a book but couldn't help it last night. One of the best chapters I've ever read.

 
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The Royal Family by William Vollmann

From Publishers Weekly

Ambitious in style, in range, and in sheer volume, Vollmann's massive new novel continues the controversial projects of Whores for Gloria and Butterfly Stories, in which the prolific author aims to create a detailed fictional map of a modern-day red-light district and of the people who try to live there. John Tyler is a successful San Francisco lawyer; his brother, Henry, is a dodgy private eye in love with John's Korean wife, Irene. When Irene commits suicide, the siblings' bitterness becomes apparent. A grieving Henry frequents the prostitutes of SF's notorious Tenderloin district; John edges towards marrying his mistress, Celia. A brutal businessman named Brady has hired Henry to track down the "Queen of Whores." Pedophile and police informant Dan Smooth finally leads Henry to the Queen, an African-American woman of indeterminate age and immense psychological insight. Rather than turn her over to Brady, Henry warns her about him. Gradually the Queen helps Henry shed his grief for Irene by leading him down the dark, dank staircase of sexual and social degradation. He learns about masochism, golden showers and other unusual practices and about love. But the Queen's command of her realm is imperiled: Brady wants to import her Tenderloin prostitutes for his Las Vegas sex emporium. Vollmann is after large-scale social chronicle; he includes characters from nearly every walk of life, and trains his attentions on processes not often seen by the faint of heart: cash flow, blood flow, phone sex, Biblical apocrypha (the Book of Nirgal) and the body odor of crackheads. But this hypperrealistic novelist also aims to present a metaphysics: the two brothers stand for two kinds of human being, the chosen and the outcast. As in all Vollmann's novels, the author's encylopedic ambition sometimes overwhelms the human scale; some supporting characters, though, do stay vivid. Vollmann avoids simply glamorizing the outcasts but remains, deep down, a Blakean romantic: prostitution is for him not only the universal indictment of the human race but also, paradoxically, the only paradise we can actually visit.(Aug.)
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beer 30 said:
Currently reading The Good Soldiers by David Finkel. About a battalion that went over specifically for the surge in Iraq and the ####hole they were dumped in to. Really good read. I just finished a the chapter where the Lieutenant Colonel in charge went back on leave to visit some of his wounded soldiers in the Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio, TX. This is where a lot of the severely burned and multiple amputations go for recovery. Incredible part of the book.

The most severely wounded was Duncan Crookston. During September of 2008 he was riding in a humvee that was hit with an EFP (explosively formed projectile which are incredibly nasty devices designed solely to slice through armor). The EFP immediately severed both of his legs, his right arm, his left hand and the resulting fire took his lips, ears, eyelids and burned pretty much his entire body with 2nd and 3rd degree burns. To say it was a miracle that he survived the initial explosion is an understatement. Only 2 other personal, at the time, had ever survived with those kind of injuries. Crookston was not expected to live but after 30 surgeries the doctors simply quit telling his wife & mother what his chances were. They all agreed that he was a living miracle at that point and simply hoped for the best every time an operation happened. The chapter details the visit and what life was like for his new 19 year old wife and mother who had lived at the facility for the last 6 months 24/7 caring for Duncan. The Lieutenant Colonel returns to Iraq and two days in received an email from Duncan's mother that he had died. Duncan Crookston was 19 when he died, he got married 6 weeks before he left for Iraq.

I don't typically tear up reading a book but couldn't help it last night. One of the best chapters I've ever read.
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Reading the same book and with you GB. Sad stuff going on over there.
 
bigbottom said:
After that I picked up The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, which I just finished this morning. Pretty good page turner, and I'll definitely start the next book tonight. I'm really starting to like these quirky crime mysteries. One of the reasons I enjoyed Josh Bazell's Beat the reaper so much.
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Is this book too edgy or hip for my 64 year old mom? She reads romance, bit of Stephen King, bit of Tom Clancy. I've tried some Oprah books in the past but she didn't really like them.
 
beer 30 said:
Currently reading The Good Soldiers by David Finkel. About a battalion that went over specifically for the surge in Iraq and the ####hole they were dumped in to. Really good read. I just finished a the chapter where the Lieutenant Colonel in charge went back on leave to visit some of his wounded soldiers in the Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio, TX. This is where a lot of the severely burned and multiple amputations go for recovery. Incredible part of the book.

The most severely wounded was Duncan Crookston. During September of 2008 he was riding in a humvee that was hit with an EFP (explosively formed projectile which are incredibly nasty devices designed solely to slice through armor). The EFP immediately severed both of his legs, his right arm, his left hand and the resulting fire took his lips, ears, eyelids and burned pretty much his entire body with 2nd and 3rd degree burns. To say it was a miracle that he survived the initial explosion is an understatement. Only 2 other personal, at the time, had ever survived with those kind of injuries. Crookston was not expected to live but after 30 surgeries the doctors simply quit telling his wife & mother what his chances were. They all agreed that he was a living miracle at that point and simply hoped for the best every time an operation happened. The chapter details the visit and what life was like for his new 19 year old wife and mother who had lived at the facility for the last 6 months 24/7 caring for Duncan. The Lieutenant Colonel returns to Iraq and two days in received an email from Duncan's mother that he had died. Duncan Crookston was 19 when he died, he got married 6 weeks before he left for Iraq.

I don't typically tear up reading a book but couldn't help it last night. One of the best chapters I've ever read.
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I just placed this on hold at my local library, the unit is part of my old regiment. Should be a great read. Also placed Black Hearts on hold.

 
kupcho1 said:
The Royal Family by William Vollmann

From Publishers Weekly

Ambitious in style, in range, and in sheer volume, Vollmann's massive new novel continues the controversial projects of Whores for Gloria and Butterfly Stories, in which the prolific author aims to create a detailed fictional map of a modern-day red-light district and of the people who try to live there. John Tyler is a successful San Francisco lawyer; his brother, Henry, is a dodgy private eye in love with John's Korean wife, Irene. When Irene commits suicide, the siblings' bitterness becomes apparent. A grieving Henry frequents the prostitutes of SF's notorious Tenderloin district; John edges towards marrying his mistress, Celia. A brutal businessman named Brady has hired Henry to track down the "Queen of Whores." Pedophile and police informant Dan Smooth finally leads Henry to the Queen, an African-American woman of indeterminate age and immense psychological insight. Rather than turn her over to Brady, Henry warns her about him. Gradually the Queen helps Henry shed his grief for Irene by leading him down the dark, dank staircase of sexual and social degradation. He learns about masochism, golden showers and other unusual practices and about love. But the Queen's command of her realm is imperiled: Brady wants to import her Tenderloin prostitutes for his Las Vegas sex emporium. Vollmann is after large-scale social chronicle; he includes characters from nearly every walk of life, and trains his attentions on processes not often seen by the faint of heart: cash flow, blood flow, phone sex, Biblical apocrypha (the Book of Nirgal) and the body odor of crackheads. But this hypperrealistic novelist also aims to present a metaphysics: the two brothers stand for two kinds of human being, the chosen and the outcast. As in all Vollmann's novels, the author's encylopedic ambition sometimes overwhelms the human scale; some supporting characters, though, do stay vivid. Vollmann avoids simply glamorizing the outcasts but remains, deep down, a Blakean romantic: prostitution is for him not only the universal indictment of the human race but also, paradoxically, the only paradise we can actually visit.(Aug.)
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Everything I've ever read by Vollmann makes me want to shoot myself in the face. I don't get the guy. Totally excruciating and unreadable.I'm reminded of this from Anis Shivani:

Exemplary Sentence: "A squat black telephone, I mean an octopus, the god of our Signal Corps, owns a recess in Berlin (more probably Moscow, which one German general has named the core of the enemy's whole being).

Third-rate Pynchon desperate to impress with quantity rather than quality. Critics taken in by sheer volume: 20 books written before the age of 50, including Rising Up and Rising Down, 3,300 pages; Europe Central, 811 pages; The Royal Family, 780 pages; Imperial, 1,344 pages. Grist for dissertation mills, intends not to be read but admired, motivated by the same incessant logorrhea as David Kirby and Albert Goldbarth in poetry. Consistent strain of misogynist sadomasochism overlooked by awed critics. Hunting down prostitutes (especially Southeast Asian prostitutes) has been uber-nerdish preoccupation, both in life and writing. Stepped into the breach left by Pynchon's long silences, determined to churn out a full Pynchon a year. Encapsulates ethical vacuity of American fiction after the collapse of 1970s postmodernism. Any moral meaning is buried in indigestible compendiums of graceless sentences. His few readable pieces are those heavily edited by conventional magazines (such as his Taliban piece edited 40 times by the New Yorker). Intentionally kills narrative with digression, to prove his superiority over other writers. His travel books follow Orientalist conventions--the coy outsiderness--despite his radical pomo self-image. Myth of Vollmann the Nobelist has been assiduously cultivated--by himself! Among his notes to his poor Viking editor, Paul Slovak, on being advised to cut his books: "I actually believe I have a shot at winning the Nobel Prize"; "Almost never do I read the final product"; "I believe that this book is worthy of standing in the shadow of Gibbon"; "It should be classed in the canon of great books."
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pantagrapher said:
kupcho1 said:
The Royal Family by William Vollmann

From Publishers Weekly

Ambitious in style, in range, and in sheer volume, Vollmann's massive new novel continues the controversial projects of Whores for Gloria and Butterfly Stories, in which the prolific author aims to create a detailed fictional map of a modern-day red-light district and of the people who try to live there. John Tyler is a successful San Francisco lawyer; his brother, Henry, is a dodgy private eye in love with John's Korean wife, Irene. When Irene commits suicide, the siblings' bitterness becomes apparent. A grieving Henry frequents the prostitutes of SF's notorious Tenderloin district; John edges towards marrying his mistress, Celia. A brutal businessman named Brady has hired Henry to track down the "Queen of Whores." Pedophile and police informant Dan Smooth finally leads Henry to the Queen, an African-American woman of indeterminate age and immense psychological insight. Rather than turn her over to Brady, Henry warns her about him. Gradually the Queen helps Henry shed his grief for Irene by leading him down the dark, dank staircase of sexual and social degradation. He learns about masochism, golden showers and other unusual practices and about love. But the Queen's command of her realm is imperiled: Brady wants to import her Tenderloin prostitutes for his Las Vegas sex emporium. Vollmann is after large-scale social chronicle; he includes characters from nearly every walk of life, and trains his attentions on processes not often seen by the faint of heart: cash flow, blood flow, phone sex, Biblical apocrypha (the Book of Nirgal) and the body odor of crackheads. But this hypperrealistic novelist also aims to present a metaphysics: the two brothers stand for two kinds of human being, the chosen and the outcast. As in all Vollmann's novels, the author's encylopedic ambition sometimes overwhelms the human scale; some supporting characters, though, do stay vivid. Vollmann avoids simply glamorizing the outcasts but remains, deep down, a Blakean romantic: prostitution is for him not only the universal indictment of the human race but also, paradoxically, the only paradise we can actually visit.(Aug.)
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Everything I've ever read by Vollmann makes me want to shoot myself in the face. I don't get the guy. Totally excruciating and unreadable.I'm reminded of this from Anis Shivani:

Exemplary Sentence: "A squat black telephone, I mean an octopus, the god of our Signal Corps, owns a recess in Berlin (more probably Moscow, which one German general has named the core of the enemy's whole being).

Third-rate Pynchon desperate to impress with quantity rather than quality. Critics taken in by sheer volume: 20 books written before the age of 50, including Rising Up and Rising Down, 3,300 pages; Europe Central, 811 pages; The Royal Family, 780 pages; Imperial, 1,344 pages. Grist for dissertation mills, intends not to be read but admired, motivated by the same incessant logorrhea as David Kirby and Albert Goldbarth in poetry. Consistent strain of misogynist sadomasochism overlooked by awed critics. Hunting down prostitutes (especially Southeast Asian prostitutes) has been uber-nerdish preoccupation, both in life and writing. Stepped into the breach left by Pynchon's long silences, determined to churn out a full Pynchon a year. Encapsulates ethical vacuity of American fiction after the collapse of 1970s postmodernism. Any moral meaning is buried in indigestible compendiums of graceless sentences. His few readable pieces are those heavily edited by conventional magazines (such as his Taliban piece edited 40 times by the New Yorker). Intentionally kills narrative with digression, to prove his superiority over other writers. His travel books follow Orientalist conventions--the coy outsiderness--despite his radical pomo self-image. Myth of Vollmann the Nobelist has been assiduously cultivated--by himself! Among his notes to his poor Viking editor, Paul Slovak, on being advised to cut his books: "I actually believe I have a shot at winning the Nobel Prize"; "Almost never do I read the final product"; "I believe that this book is worthy of standing in the shadow of Gibbon"; "It should be classed in the canon of great books."
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I'm actually enjoying it quite a bit ~60 pages in. I don't see the Pynchon comparison at all. :shrug:

 
The Sportswriter by Richard Ford. Not worth the investment. Ford is lauded for this and a followup novel that detail the life of Frank Bascombe, a sportswriter dealing with some major issues. Problem is, neither Bascombe nor the people he interacts with are that interesting, and there is no real plot to speak of.

Intern by Sandeep Jauhar. Great read about the harrowing experience that is the first year of a medical residency. Jauhar is a talented writer.

Never Let Me Go by Ishiguro. Reviewed here several times, which led to my picking it up. I'll echo the sentiments in those reviews - it is very good.

 
pantagrapher said:
Everything I've ever read by Vollmann makes me want to shoot myself in the face. I don't get the guy. Totally excruciating and unreadable.
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:mellow: and I'm a big metafiction, post-modern guy. I like Pynchon a lot and love David Foster Wallace. But I just don't really get Vollmann. The furthest I ever got with him was "Argall," his retelling of John Smith and Pocohantas, and even then it's just a brutal slog, especially when you can just reread "Mason & Dixon" or "The Sot-weed Factor" instead.
 
Barry said:
bigbottom said:
After that I picked up The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, which I just finished this morning. Pretty good page turner, and I'll definitely start the next book tonight. I'm really starting to like these quirky crime mysteries. One of the reasons I enjoyed Josh Bazell's Beat the reaper so much.
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Is this book too edgy or hip for my 64 year old mom? She reads romance, bit of Stephen King, bit of Tom Clancy. I've tried some Oprah books in the past but she didn't really like them.
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There are definitely some pretty gritty parts/themes. So far, the second book is even grittier.
 
Guns, Germs, and Steel by Jared Diamond

quiet intersting look at history, full of facts and well written.

I am not a big fan of grand theories in social science that try to explain everything, but he extracts very plausible patterns of development

currently reading:

The third part of Varlam Shalamovs "Kolyma Tales" about live in the Gulag.

I liked the first two parts and this one is so fare on the same level.

 
The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet by David Mitchell.

I saw this in the new books section of the library so I snagged it. I'm fifty pages in and enjoying it so far.

 
The Terror by Dan Simmons

Been looking forward to this one for a while. Really good despite the length, though I wasn't a huge fan of the ending. The last 50 pages felt drawn out and largely unnecessary.

But I loved the slow, inevitable horror of it all. Even the silver linings in the book were such a long shot that it just maintained this hopeless feel the entire time. I know that's probably not a very enticing pitch for the book, but it really worked.

Any interest I may have had in a non-tropical cruise is entirely destroyed. I'll stick to the Caribbean.

Next up:

Treasure Island and then The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo

 
kblitz said:
Guns, Germs, and Steel by Jared Diamond

quiet intersting look at history, full of facts and well written.

I am not a big fan of grand theories in social science that try to explain everything, but he extracts very plausible patterns of development

currently reading:

The third part of Varlam Shalamovs "Kolyma Tales" about live in the Gulag.

I liked the first two parts and this one is so fare on the same level.
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I liked this book but it felt like it could have been half as long and made it's point just as well.
 
igbomb said:
kblitz said:
Guns, Germs, and Steel by Jared Diamond

quiet intersting look at history, full of facts and well written.

I am not a big fan of grand theories in social science that try to explain everything, but he extracts very plausible patterns of development

currently reading:

The third part of Varlam Shalamovs "Kolyma Tales" about live in the Gulag.

I liked the first two parts and this one is so fare on the same level.
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I liked this book but it felt like it could have been half as long and made it's point just as well.
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Exactly. There are some great theories and ideas in the book, but it seems like he makes them all at the beginning of the book and repeats himself throughout the rest of the book. Quite repetitive.

 
pricklypete said:
Finished off some decent Zombie novels.

As The World Dies.

This is a trilogy that surprisingly held my attention. I was a bit leery because it is written by a woman and was self published. But it worked. She did a good job with it.

I wasn't a fan of one of the main characters, annoyed the hell out of me, but she gets better throughout the trilogy.

Really, who could resist two hot chicks (one a lesbian) running around killing zombies? I was hoping for some hot lesbian scenes, but it didn't happen (sorry shuke). :rant:

It is what it is, and it kept me entertained.

Dying To Live

Pretty interesting. Lone survivor stumbles upon a compound full of survivors. Fighting off zombies and rescuing other survivors. Liked it.

There is a sequel which I haven't gotten to yet Dying To Live: Life Sentence. I guess it takes place 12 years later and gets a little goofy (communicating with the zombies). But I haven't started it so I can't attest to the exacts.

Finally, I read Day By Day Armegeddon.

Very quick read. Entertaining. Air Force pilot who decideds not to go into the base with his comrades and goes at it alone (at first).

Sequel coming July 13th. I will check it out.

Overall I would recommend all of the above. Don't go in expecting HIGH literature. They are fun books and all have their flaws.

I think the parts I enjoyed most were the human conflicts. All of the books above had the element of not only fighting zombies, but also roving human gangs, dirtbags, etc.

I have also picked up The Passage because of this thread. Looking forward to getting started on it.
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Has anybody checked any of these out?

Just curious on other's thoughts on them. After being in the minority of not liking the passage I'm wondering if I just have horrible taste.

 
pricklypete said:
pricklypete said:
Finished off some decent Zombie novels.

As The World Dies.

This is a trilogy that surprisingly held my attention. I was a bit leery because it is written by a woman and was self published. But it worked. She did a good job with it.

I wasn't a fan of one of the main characters, annoyed the hell out of me, but she gets better throughout the trilogy.

Really, who could resist two hot chicks (one a lesbian) running around killing zombies? I was hoping for some hot lesbian scenes, but it didn't happen (sorry shuke). :confused:

It is what it is, and it kept me entertained.

Dying To Live

Pretty interesting. Lone survivor stumbles upon a compound full of survivors. Fighting off zombies and rescuing other survivors. Liked it.

There is a sequel which I haven't gotten to yet Dying To Live: Life Sentence. I guess it takes place 12 years later and gets a little goofy (communicating with the zombies). But I haven't started it so I can't attest to the exacts.

Finally, I read Day By Day Armegeddon.

Very quick read. Entertaining. Air Force pilot who decideds not to go into the base with his comrades and goes at it alone (at first).

Sequel coming July 13th. I will check it out.

Overall I would recommend all of the above. Don't go in expecting HIGH literature. They are fun books and all have their flaws.

I think the parts I enjoyed most were the human conflicts. All of the books above had the element of not only fighting zombies, but also roving human gangs, dirtbags, etc.

I have also picked up The Passage because of this thread. Looking forward to getting started on it.
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Has anybody checked any of these out?

Just curious on other's thoughts on them. After being in the minority of not liking the passage I'm wondering if I just have horrible taste.
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I've read The Passage and really liked it. I've got the Armageddon books on my Kindle Wishlist, but haven't pulled the trigger yet. Who would you compare Bourne's writing style to?Finishing up my 3-pack of Stephen Hunter novels - 47th Samauri (bad), Night Of Thunder (better, but still not up to Hunter's previous Swagger books), and I, Sniper (so far the best of the lot and a return to the more "standard" Swagger-style tale). I listed them in chronological order if anyone's interested. It's not required to read them in order, but some parts will have you :shrug: if you don't.

 
I"m on the 4th Harry Bosch novel by Michael Connelly...probably the best written detective series I've read. Thoroughly enjoying them. Although I'm not through with the 4th yet, here's how I'd rank the first 4.

3,1,4,2. I've read his later novels (Blood work, lincoln lawyer, brass verdict) and while those are good too, especially lincoln lawyer and brass verdict, I like these books more. Great characters and a story that rings true.

 
Recently finished Laughter in the Dark. Nice, quick, satisfying read. Definitely not the fully mature Nabokov prose I'm accustomed to, but you can see glimpses of where he'd go and the themes of course are the same ones he'd grapple with in the future. Jumped right into Despair, another short, early Nabokov novel. Really loving this one so far.

 
Uruk-Hai said:
pricklypete said:
pricklypete said:
Finished off some decent Zombie novels.

As The World Dies.

This is a trilogy that surprisingly held my attention. I was a bit leery because it is written by a woman and was self published. But it worked. She did a good job with it.

I wasn't a fan of one of the main characters, annoyed the hell out of me, but she gets better throughout the trilogy.

Really, who could resist two hot chicks (one a lesbian) running around killing zombies? I was hoping for some hot lesbian scenes, but it didn't happen (sorry shuke). :(

It is what it is, and it kept me entertained.

Dying To Live

Pretty interesting. Lone survivor stumbles upon a compound full of survivors. Fighting off zombies and rescuing other survivors. Liked it.

There is a sequel which I haven't gotten to yet Dying To Live: Life Sentence. I guess it takes place 12 years later and gets a little goofy (communicating with the zombies). But I haven't started it so I can't attest to the exacts.

Finally, I read Day By Day Armegeddon.

Very quick read. Entertaining. Air Force pilot who decideds not to go into the base with his comrades and goes at it alone (at first).

Sequel coming July 13th. I will check it out.

Overall I would recommend all of the above. Don't go in expecting HIGH literature. They are fun books and all have their flaws.

I think the parts I enjoyed most were the human conflicts. All of the books above had the element of not only fighting zombies, but also roving human gangs, dirtbags, etc.

I have also picked up The Passage because of this thread. Looking forward to getting started on it.
Click to expand...
Has anybody checked any of these out?

Just curious on other's thoughts on them. After being in the minority of not liking the passage I'm wondering if I just have horrible taste.
Click to expand...
I've read The Passage and really liked it. I've got the Armageddon books on my Kindle Wishlist, but haven't pulled the trigger yet. Who would you compare Bourne's writing style to?Finishing up my 3-pack of Stephen Hunter novels - 47th Samauri (bad), Night Of Thunder (better, but still not up to Hunter's previous Swagger books), and I, Sniper (so far the best of the lot and a return to the more "standard" Swagger-style tale). I listed them in chronological order if anyone's interested. It's not required to read them in order, but some parts will have you ;) if you don't.
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I can't really compare Bourne to any other author. The book is 'different'. Very unusual layout. More of a journal format. You get some spelling and grammatical errors that can be bothersome, but I just read as if I was reading someone's journal. Different but entertaining. A very quick read.

 
pantagrapher said:
Recently finished Laughter in the Dark. Nice, quick, satisfying read. Definitely not the fully mature Nabokov prose I'm accustomed to, but you can see glimpses of where he'd go and the themes of course are the same ones he'd grapple with in the future. Jumped right into Despair, another short, early Nabokov novel. Really loving this one so far.
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Despair is one of my favorites. Have you ever read Nabokov's memoir, "Speak, Memory"? It is great.

 
The_Man said:
pantagrapher said:
Recently finished Laughter in the Dark. Nice, quick, satisfying read. Definitely not the fully mature Nabokov prose I'm accustomed to, but you can see glimpses of where he'd go and the themes of course are the same ones he'd grapple with in the future. Jumped right into Despair, another short, early Nabokov novel. Really loving this one so far.
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Despair is one of my favorites. Have you ever read Nabokov's memoir, "Speak, Memory"? It is great.
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Not yet. Very much looking forward to that one.
 
Based on a couple of other book threads that sprouted up, I just finished:

The Big Short - Michael Lewis. Really liked this one. Written in an engaging way and the story itself was interesting and illuminating.

1776 - David McCullough. Hard to not like this. It was a good read and not as stiff as I had imagined it would be. That said, there's other war authors I've liked better.

 
Uruk-Hai said:
Finishing up my 3-pack of Stephen Hunter novels - 47th Samauri (bad), Night Of Thunder (better, but still not up to Hunter's previous Swagger books), and I, Sniper (so far the best of the lot and a return to the more "standard" Swagger-style tale). I listed them in chronological order if anyone's interested. It's not required to read them in order, but some parts will have you :popcorn: if you don't.
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Have you read Hunter's Dirty White Boys? It's different from most of his other stuff, but it's really good.
 
parrot said:
Uruk-Hai said:
Finishing up my 3-pack of Stephen Hunter novels - 47th Samauri (bad), Night Of Thunder (better, but still not up to Hunter's previous Swagger books), and I, Sniper (so far the best of the lot and a return to the more "standard" Swagger-style tale). I listed them in chronological order if anyone's interested. It's not required to read them in order, but some parts will have you :confused: if you don't.
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Have you read Hunter's Dirty White Boys? It's different from most of his other stuff, but it's really good.
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Yep - first Hunter book I read and I agree that it's really good. Seems like I read somewhere years ago that it was being made into a movie. Did this happen & I missed it?
 
Uruk-Hai said:
parrot said:
Uruk-Hai said:
Finishing up my 3-pack of Stephen Hunter novels - 47th Samauri (bad), Night Of Thunder (better, but still not up to Hunter's previous Swagger books), and I, Sniper (so far the best of the lot and a return to the more "standard" Swagger-style tale). I listed them in chronological order if anyone's interested. It's not required to read them in order, but some parts will have you :confused: if you don't.
Click to expand...
Have you read Hunter's Dirty White Boys? It's different from most of his other stuff, but it's really good.
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Yep - first Hunter book I read and I agree that it's really good. Seems like I read somewhere years ago that it was being made into a movie. Did this happen & I missed it?
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I don't think so. After the steaming pile that Shooter turned out to be, maybe it's for the best.
 
parrot said:
Uruk-Hai said:
parrot said:
Uruk-Hai said:
Finishing up my 3-pack of Stephen Hunter novels - 47th Samauri (bad), Night Of Thunder (better, but still not up to Hunter's previous Swagger books), and I, Sniper (so far the best of the lot and a return to the more "standard" Swagger-style tale). I listed them in chronological order if anyone's interested. It's not required to read them in order, but some parts will have you :lmao: if you don't.
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Have you read Hunter's Dirty White Boys? It's different from most of his other stuff, but it's really good.
Click to expand...
Yep - first Hunter book I read and I agree that it's really good. Seems like I read somewhere years ago that it was being made into a movie. Did this happen & I missed it?
Click to expand...
I don't think so. After the steaming pile that Shooter turned out to be, maybe it's for the best.
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I've actually enjoyed Tapestry of Spies and Second Saladin (non Swagger novels) the most of all of Hunter's work - by far.
 
KarmaPolice said:
igbomb said:
kblitz said:
Guns, Germs, and Steel by Jared Diamond

quiet intersting look at history, full of facts and well written.

I am not a big fan of grand theories in social science that try to explain everything, but he extracts very plausible patterns of development

currently reading:

The third part of Varlam Shalamovs "Kolyma Tales" about live in the Gulag.

I liked the first two parts and this one is so fare on the same level.
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I liked this book but it felt like it could have been half as long and made it's point just as well.
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Exactly. There are some great theories and ideas in the book, but it seems like he makes them all at the beginning of the book and repeats himself throughout the rest of the book. Quite repetitive.
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I found the examples quiet interesting because they weren´t standard examples that you get teached in histroy class. I didn´t know anything about the development in Polinesia before this book. But you are right just to apply his theoretical framework, one or two regional histories might have been sufficient.
 
igbomb said:
Gone Baby Gone - Dennis Lehane - Fantastic. Would have been better if I hadn't already seen the movie, but it was still great though I knew how it would all end. I'm trying to space out my Lehane books since his catalog isn't too large, but I'm having a hard time not reading them one after the other.

The Confessor - Daniel Silva - I almost gave up on this series after the first book. It just didn't seem that interesting. But having read a couple more, I really like these books. I'm not sure what changed between books one and two, but I now thing this is one of the better series out there.

The Tommyknockers - Stephen King - The worst King book I have read. Really, really boring for the vast majority of it.

Currently reading:

Born to Run - Christopher McDougall - Phenomenal book about ultra distance running. This is exactly the kind of non-fiction I like as it makes you smarter while telling an oftentimes amazing story. I immediately want to run out and buy some Vibram Fivefingers and go for a jog. On the other hand, this book is also sheer torture as I am currently reading it while wearing a cast on my foot as I am four weeks removed from surgery to re-attach my Achilles tendon. I have an appointment with my foot and ankle surgeon tomorrow and I can't wait to ask him what he thinks about the whole barefoot running movement and whether it would be good for me as I work into my rehab. The book notes that many orthopedic doctors are not on board with the barefoot running trend and I'm curious to see where he stands.

Next up:

A couple of doorstoppers in The Terror by Dan Simmons and The Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson.
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Just finished Way of Kings. The first 600 pages or so are uninteresting enough to start picking apart the problems with his prose. It's very unpolished IMO, like a college student's work. It did pick up a lot in the end but since the next installment of 10 total books isn't due out until 2012 (if we're all still alive) it definitely could've stayed on the shelf for awhile. One of the main problems, other than the prose, was that I just didn't like the world he created. Everything's like a giant tidepool, minus the water. Most of the critters are crab-like, everything is stone with plants that retract into stone shells during the hurricane class storms that rush through a few times a month. It all sounds like he's describing a high gloss comic book with bold colors, twinkling bug sized critters floating everywhere that are embodiments of emotions or natural things like fire, etc... Seemed more sci-fi than fantasy to me, and while that's a very nebulous distinction (like my distinction between rap and hip-hop), it made a difference to me in my enjoyment of the book. I did finish it, based on reviews at goodreads that said it picked up, but it didn't sate my thirst for a good fantasy book. Off to the library now for me to return it.

 
I finished A Confederacy of Dunces due to recs in this thread and hearing Artie Lange mention it many times on the Stern show. I usually read non-fiction or action/thriller type novels but it didn't take long to get caught up in this book and it's many unique characters. So much depth and detail, I really was left wanting more...and more. Very inspirational backstory with John Kennedy Toole's mom and her persistance in getting this out to the world. It's very rare that I'll read a book a second time but I know I will with this one. Loved it.

Was there ever any discussion on making a movie out of it?

 
jamny said:
I finished A Confederacy of Dunces due to recs in this thread and hearing Artie Lange mention it many times on the Stern show. I usually read non-fiction or action/thriller type novels but it didn't take long to get caught up in this book and it's many unique characters. So much depth and detail, I really was left wanting more...and more. Very inspirational backstory with John Kennedy Toole's mom and her persistance in getting this out to the world. It's very rare that I'll read a book a second time but I know I will with this one. Loved it.

Was there ever any discussion on making a movie out of it?
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:football: The Development Hell of A Confederacy of Dunces

 
jamny said:
I finished A Confederacy of Dunces due to recs in this thread and hearing Artie Lange mention it many times on the Stern show. I usually read non-fiction or action/thriller type novels but it didn't take long to get caught up in this book and it's many unique characters. So much depth and detail, I really was left wanting more...and more. Very inspirational backstory with John Kennedy Toole's mom and her persistance in getting this out to the world. It's very rare that I'll read a book a second time but I know I will with this one. Loved it.

Was there ever any discussion on making a movie out of it?
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I remember some talk not long ago about a movie version starring Will Ferrell. Never materialized though.
 
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kupcho1 said:
jamny said:
I finished A Confederacy of Dunces due to recs in this thread and hearing Artie Lange mention it many times on the Stern show. I usually read non-fiction or action/thriller type novels but it didn't take long to get caught up in this book and it's many unique characters. So much depth and detail, I really was left wanting more...and more. Very inspirational backstory with John Kennedy Toole's mom and her persistance in getting this out to the world. It's very rare that I'll read a book a second time but I know I will with this one. Loved it.

Was there ever any discussion on making a movie out of it?
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:yes: The Development Hell of A Confederacy of Dunces
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Wow, very interesting...thanks. :football:
 
Like I said, Artie Lange says it's his favorite book. While he would fit the role physically I don't think he has the acting range for it. Imagine that with Belushi and Pryor.

Whoa! :football:

 
Finished Truman Capote's In Cold Blood. Good read

Currently reading The Kid Stays in the Picture. What an unbelievable ride Robert Evans had. Amazing stories. Hard to tell somethimes if it is fact or fiction. Hard book to put down. Strongly recommend :lmao:

 
facook said:
parrot said:
Uruk-Hai said:
parrot said:
Uruk-Hai said:
Finishing up my 3-pack of Stephen Hunter novels - 47th Samauri (bad), Night Of Thunder (better, but still not up to Hunter's previous Swagger books), and I, Sniper (so far the best of the lot and a return to the more "standard" Swagger-style tale). I listed them in chronological order if anyone's interested. It's not required to read them in order, but some parts will have you :hot: if you don't.
Click to expand...
Have you read Hunter's Dirty White Boys? It's different from most of his other stuff, but it's really good.
Click to expand...
Yep - first Hunter book I read and I agree that it's really good. Seems like I read somewhere years ago that it was being made into a movie. Did this happen & I missed it?
Click to expand...
I don't think so. After the steaming pile that Shooter turned out to be, maybe it's for the best.
Click to expand...
I've actually enjoyed Tapestry of Spies and Second Saladin (non Swagger novels) the most of all of Hunter's work - by far.
Click to expand...
I haven't read either of these. Kinda burned out on Hunter a few years. Might have to give them a read. I have 100 pages of A Feast for Crows left. When is A Dance with Dragons going to come out????? :hot:

 
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parrot said:
I have 100 pages of A Feast for Crows left. When is A Dance with Dragons going to come out????? :popcorn:
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God only knows. I think the general feeling on fanboards is that he's close. But whether that's wishful thinking or just playing the odds (it's gotta be done sometime, right?) or is true - :lmao:
 
D_House said:
The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet by David Mitchell.

I saw this in the new books section of the library so I snagged it. I'm fifty pages in and enjoying it so far.
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I really enjoyed this. I haven't read any Mitchell before, but looking through the (mixed) reviews of his latest, it seems like this is more straightforward and plot-driven than his previous works.
 
Just finished Culture of Corruption.

Great read, it's amazing how Obama really hasn't changed anything in regards to the way the government is ran. He's actually done what the last presidents since Kennedy has done but only on a larger scale.

 
pricklypete said:
Uruk-Hai said:
pricklypete said:
pricklypete said:
Finished off some decent Zombie novels.

Finally, I read Day By Day Armegeddon.

Very quick read. Entertaining. Air Force pilot who decideds not to go into the base with his comrades and goes at it alone (at first).

Sequel coming July 13th. I will check it out.

Overall I would recommend all of the above. Don't go in expecting HIGH literature. They are fun books and all have their flaws.

I think the parts I enjoyed most were the human conflicts. All of the books above had the element of not only fighting zombies, but also roving human gangs, dirtbags, etc.

I have also picked up The Passage because of this thread. Looking forward to getting started on it.
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Has anybody checked any of these out?

Just curious on other's thoughts on them. After being in the minority of not liking the passage I'm wondering if I just have horrible taste.
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I've read The Passage and really liked it. I've got the Armageddon books on my Kindle Wishlist, but haven't pulled the trigger yet. Who would you compare Bourne's writing style to?Finishing up my 3-pack of Stephen Hunter novels - 47th Samauri (bad), Night Of Thunder (better, but still not up to Hunter's previous Swagger books), and I, Sniper (so far the best of the lot and a return to the more "standard" Swagger-style tale). I listed them in chronological order if anyone's interested. It's not required to read them in order, but some parts will have you :rolleyes: if you don't.
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I can't really compare Bourne to any other author. The book is 'different'. Very unusual layout. More of a journal format. You get some spelling and grammatical errors that can be bothersome, but I just read as if I was reading someone's journal. Different but entertaining. A very quick read.
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Just finished "Day By Day Armegeddon" and liked it. Did a little digging on the author & discovered he started what became the book as blogs on a fan fiction site. Writing the book as a series of journal entries was a masterstroke, IMO, as it allows a bit of a lame writing style & grammatical errors to be written off as the journalist's style. Kindle users beware as there are some obvious entry errors - nothing to ruin the expeience but a little annoying. I just downloaded the 2nd in the series and will start it today.
 
After work I'm going to pick up Ken Follett's latest Fall Of Giants. I've been looking forward to this for some time. I was surprised that it only got 2 out of 5 stars on Amazon. After reading the reviews it looks like all the 1 stars are over pricing. Amazon is selling the Kindle version for more than the hardcover.

 
With the movie out, I just picked up The Accidental Billionaires and The Facebook Effect. Been working with Facebook recently, so interested in some history and thought I'd get hopefully different viewpoints by getting both books. I'm also curious how well the Social Network movie stuck to the book, The Accidental Billionaires.

 
pantagrapher said:
jamny said:
I finished A Confederacy of Dunces due to recs in this thread and hearing Artie Lange mention it many times on the Stern show. I usually read non-fiction or action/thriller type novels but it didn't take long to get caught up in this book and it's many unique characters. So much depth and detail, I really was left wanting more...and more. Very inspirational backstory with John Kennedy Toole's mom and her persistance in getting this out to the world. It's very rare that I'll read a book a second time but I know I will with this one. Loved it.

Was there ever any discussion on making a movie out of it?
Click to expand...
I remember some talk not long ago about a movie version starring Will Ferrell. Never materialized though.
Click to expand...
John Goodman would make a great Ignatius
 
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