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Whatcha readin now? (book, books, reading, read) (1 Viewer)

simsarge said:
About 3/4 of the way through The Last Bus To Wisdom audiobook.  Great, whimsical coming of age story about an 11 year old's adventures (sometimes solo) through the Midwest in the summer of 1951. I feel like it has more than a little Tom Sawyer to it. I can't recommend this story enough. The story, the writing, the little adventures and misadventures, you can tell the seem to come as much from the heart and life as a kid as the author's desire to make up a story.
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Finished this and have to say that the last chapter or so were kind of a let down. Way too many coincidences to tie things up. It got to the point that I was groaning out loud at some of them. I'm a sucker for buying into a good story and suspending reality for the sake of it, but this was tough. I wonder if because he was ill, he may not have had time to finish it the way he wanted to. Excellent story up to that point tho, so don't let this chase you away.

Starting Heart Shaped Box tonight on the way home thanks to some recommendations on here.

 
I am reading The Fireman by Joe Hill. I heard lots of good stuff about this book but so far I am not that impressed. I am halfway through and I doubt it will get any better. I will finish it though.

 
prosopis said:
I am reading The Fireman by Joe Hill. I heard lots of good stuff about this book but so far I am not that impressed. I am halfway through and I doubt it will get any better. I will finish it though.
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I liked it.  Not as much as Heart Shaped Box but I did like it.  I think he creates characters really well like his dad.

 
I'm about two-thirds of the way through George Saunders' Lincoln in the Bardo.  It is a work of art.  "Bardo" refers to the state in Tibetan belief between death and reincarnation.   The Lincoln is the President's son, Willie, after his death in 1862.

The concept and style are like nothing that I have read before.  Certain chapters are written purely in the form of quotes from articles and books (sometimes to comedic effect given the differing accounts describing the same event).  Others are in the form of entering into the characters' heads, which are principally ghosts in the same cemetery as Willie (and the characters entering into the heads of other persons, including Lincoln).

The style may not be for everyone, and may take some getting used to, but it's pretty damn gorgeous.

 
I just started Underground Airlines by Ben Winter (the guy who wrote The Last Policeman, which I really liked). From the Amazon blurb:

It is the present-day, and the world is as we know it: smartphones, social networking and Happy Meals. Save for one thing: the Civil War never occurred.
 
A gifted young black man calling himself Victor has struck a bargain with federal law enforcement, working as a bounty hunter for the US Marshall Service. He's got plenty of work. In this version of America, slavery continues in four states called "the Hard Four." On the trail of a runaway known as Jackdaw, Victor arrives in Indianapolis knowing that something isn't right--with the case file, with his work, and with the country itself.
 
Next up, I think I'll tackle Lincoln In The Bardo
 
If folks are interested - Sanderson's Firefight books are on sale at Amazon and Google Play for $2 each.  If you like that type of book they're superb.

 
Sand said:
If folks are interested - Sanderson's Firefight books are on sale at Amazon and Google Play for $2 each.  If you like that type of book they're superb.
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Interesting.  I just picked up Steelheart at the library today.  Saw it on a list for 'best of the year' (I think by the AV Club?) for whatever year it came out. 

 
KarmaPolice said:
Interesting.  I just picked up Steelheart at the library today.  Saw it on a list for 'best of the year' (I think by the AV Club?) for whatever year it came out. 
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Super fun book.  Thoroughly enjoyed it, as did my family (listened to it while on road trips).

 
Uruk-Hai said:
I just started Underground Airlines by Ben Winter (the guy who wrote The Last Policeman, which I really liked). From the Amazon blurb:

It is the present-day, and the world is as we know it: smartphones, social networking and Happy Meals. Save for one thing: the Civil War never occurred.
 
A gifted young black man calling himself Victor has struck a bargain with federal law enforcement, working as a bounty hunter for the US Marshall Service. He's got plenty of work. In this version of America, slavery continues in four states called "the Hard Four." On the trail of a runaway known as Jackdaw, Victor arrives in Indianapolis knowing that something isn't right--with the case file, with his work, and with the country itself.
 
Next up, I think I'll tackle Lincoln In The Bardo
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:blackdot:

 
City On Fire by Garth Hallberg.  Really enjoying this books. 6 or 8 characters whose lives intersect in 1977 New York. Interesting characters, story is good, and the setting and time is fascinating to me. Highly recommend.

 
Uruk-Hai said:
I just started Underground Airlines by Ben Winter (the guy who wrote The Last Policeman, which I really liked). From the Amazon blurb:

It is the present-day, and the world is as we know it: smartphones, social networking and Happy Meals. Save for one thing: the Civil War never occurred.
 
A gifted young black man calling himself Victor has struck a bargain with federal law enforcement, working as a bounty hunter for the US Marshall Service. He's got plenty of work. In this version of America, slavery continues in four states called "the Hard Four." On the trail of a runaway known as Jackdaw, Victor arrives in Indianapolis knowing that something isn't right--with the case file, with his work, and with the country itself.
 
 
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Welp, I don't know how many books I've read in my life - some thousands, I'd guess - but this is one of the few that devastated me. Not because of the concept or the plot (both very well done, IMO), but the narrator's voice (the story is told first-person) may be the best I've ever read. I'm still not sure the plot works on close inspection, nor do I want to think too hard about the mechanics of the alt-history concept (though I found the Michael Jackson references hilarious). I think the author does a fine job of setting up this world with a minimum of exposition (most is of the "show, don't tell" variety). 

The story is self-contained, though I can see a sequel coming the way it ended.

I was gonna do the new Saunders next, but I can't deal with him right now after this last book (Saunders just rips my heart to shreds) so I'm gonna go pulpier with Stephen Hunter's take on Jack the Ripper - I, Ripper. 

 
I think I've stumbled into doing the bio on every President thing, but we'll see how long it lasts.

I've already read bios on about half of the Presidents -- just filling in the gaps.

Just read Ted Widmer's bio on Martin Van Buren from the Schlesinger series. He was the first chronologically that I had not read a bio on yet. The books in the series are not as comprehensive and well-sourced as I typically like my bios, but it serves its purpose where the options are a bit limited.

Now on Gail Collins' bio on William Henry Harrison from the same series.

 
Ben Bova - Mercury Used to be a big Sci-Fi reader that somehow missed Bova. Enjoying this one so far, will pick up a couple of more from the library

 
trogg78 said:
I use it to track the books I've read and mostly to keep track of the books I want to read so I can reserve them at the library.
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exactly how i use Goodreads, too. although i have a few IRL friends who use it regularly, and it's interesting to see what they are reading.

i also like the monthly email/newsletter which lists new books by authors you've read.

 
Finished Joe Hill's Heart Shaped Box.  Thought it was good and pretty creepy.  Put me in the mood for more horror so started his dad's Doctor Sleep.

 
shuke said:
Finished Joe Hill's Heart Shaped Box.  Thought it was good and pretty creepy.  Put me in the mood for more horror so started his dad's Doctor Sleep.
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Doctor Sleep got great reviews on Amazon, but I was kind of disappointed by it. On the plus side, it's probably the most original book King has done in years, and that made fans go crazy. On the minus side: King has always been a great writer. He could write a novel about a town that stopped and looked at the sun for 30 minutes at noon everyday and people would read it. However, despite having great ideas for decades, King has sort of run out of them. King to me is the anti Dan Brown. Dan Brown is a terrible writer who writes on a 4the grade level. But: he has interesting ideas that draw people in. 

Doctor Sleep is fine, but: The villains aren't nearly dangerous enough, and the ending is never in doubt. There is no tension or fear. It's not really horror. Other people see it differently. 

 
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timschochet said:
As good as it is, I say World Without End is better.

There's a 3rd one due out this fall.
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Sure - both were superb.  I can't say I thought one was better than the other.  Still, for $2 you just buy it and put it int he pile to read.  It's a can't miss kind of book.

 
I also thought Leviathan Wakes and the whole Expanse series was great. :thumbup:

Just finished Tim Dorsey's Florida Roadkill, a violent and somewhat funny book along the lines of what Carl Hiassen would write. I thought it was slow to start but got much better as it went along. Not great, but not terrible either. Now on to Sanderson's Elantris so I can get caught up with his Cosmere world (I've already read the first Mistborn trilogy and the Words of Radiance books). So far, so good - again, a little slow to develop but it's getting much better as I get deeper into the book.

 
I'm reading The Son by Philipp (one L & two P's) Meyer.  It's an epic about a family in Texas with multiple storylines spanning generations in alternating chapters.  It's going to be an AMC series next month that apparently will cover two of the plot lines.

The novel is outside of my wheelhouse.  I usually run away from multi-generational historical epics but this one got excellent reviews when published in 2013.  It's well written and the Indian chapters include a wealth of information about tanning buffalo hides and making arrows.

 
Eephus said:
I'm reading The Son by Philipp (one L & two P's) Meyer.  It's an epic about a family in Texas with multiple storylines spanning generations in alternating chapters.  It's going to be an AMC series next month that apparently will cover two of the plot lines.

The novel is outside of my wheelhouse.  I usually run away from multi-generational historical epics but this one got excellent reviews when published in 2013.  It's well written and the Indian chapters include a wealth of information about tanning buffalo hides and making arrows.
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I've read this and liked it quite a bit.

 
Eephus said:
I'm reading The Son by Philipp (one L & two P's) Meyer.  It's an epic about a family in Texas with multiple storylines spanning generations in alternating chapters.  It's going to be an AMC series next month that apparently will cover two of the plot lines.

The novel is outside of my wheelhouse.  I usually run away from multi-generational historical epics but this one got excellent reviews when published in 2013.  It's well written and the Indian chapters include a wealth of information about tanning buffalo hides and making arrows.
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I read this one and really liked it (& may have reviewed it here). I'm gonna give the TV series a shot, though that'll put me dangerously close to TV series overload this spring - this, Saul, and The Americans will be about all I can keep up with.

 
Just got a copy of Old man and the sea.

Didn't expect it to be such a short book.

 
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Another great book on sale - Enemy at the Gates.  Best book out there on the Battle of Stalingrad (1.5M casualties - bloodiest battle in history).  Mostly about snipers during that war, but contains lots of discussion of the battle overall.  

 
I have a 13 hour road trip on Saturday and then 13 hours back the following Saturday - any good audio books that will keep me awake?  I usually just listen to podcasts.

 
Hov34 said:
I have a 13 hour road trip on Saturday and then 13 hours back the following Saturday - any good audio books that will keep me awake?  I usually just listen to podcasts.
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What kind of stuff do you like to read?  If you like history the one above is easy to recommend.  If you like something else i'm sure good recommendations can be found.

 
Currently reading the "Honor Bound" series by WEB Griffin.  Military fiction.  This series takes place mostly in Argentina.

Like his stuff a lot.

 
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wazoo11 said:
Just got a copy of Old man and the sea.

Didn't expect it to be such a short book.
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Super quick read, think I started and finished it on a fight from Detroit to Denver. It's a great book. Near perfection.

 
Been reading a little bit more lately.  Nothing award winning or anything, mostly just quick reads.  Got back into Mr. King a little bit, and other books that have good pace and short chapters (I grab these books b/c they are easier to get through as the kids run around, while I cook, etc.. ). 

There is a library I go to once a month for their book sales.  Just happen to show up last Saturday and they were having a sale where anything you can put in a paper grocery bag was $3 for the whole bag of books.   Usually get the trade paperbacks since they are easy to tote around, and I think I loaded around 30 of them into the bag.  Got several from King (Under the Dome, Lisey's Story, Dark Tower 3, Different Seasons, Misery, Bachman Books) got a few Crichton (Next, Congo, and a couple others), a couple McCammon (Boy's Life, Speaks the Nightbird, Swan Song), a couple from Simmons (Summer of Night, The Terror),  and just a mix of suspense/mystery/sci-fi. 

Started off reading Misery.  I read it when it first came out, but didn't remember a ton about it besides the basics.  The book was a lot better than I remembered it.  Just nuts what goes on, and I loved the reveal with Annie's scrapbook.  I didn't remember anything about her past at all.  I did remember being bored with the book-within-a-book thing back in the day, and that was about as bad as I remembered it.  I struggled to get through that, especially when I got harder and harder to read with the missing letters.  Still great overall, and you can tell it was written as he was struggling with his addictions and demons too. 

Next I read Rage from the Bachman books.  Again, I had read it back in the day, remembered the basic premise, and knew that it was taken out of print for it's association with shootings.  This one was pretty damn bad.  I have 0 problem with the basic idea of a school shooting, but it was just making me cringe how King was seemingly treating the kid as a hero and it was some kind of cleansing therapy session for the kids in the room.  Just odd that the one voice in the story that was reminding people that he was crazy and has murdered people was the one that was seemingly turned into the villain. 

Also breezed through Congo, which I thought was OK but a tad cheesy.  There is still nuggets of stuff in there that I loved and was a reason I dug reading Crichton to begin with, so I still enjoyed it overall. 

Now I think it might be back to King for Dark Tower 3, but we will see. 

 
STEADYMOBBIN 22 said:
Anybody have a suggestion for books on Churchill. The HBO mini movie "The Gathering Storm" inspired me of all things. 
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Lots of great ones. 

The Last Lion trilogy by Manchester is the one that I'd recommend the most. As good as history gets.

For a single volume, I like both Roy Jenkins (former member of House of Commons), and Martin Gilbert's (authorized biographer).

Some of the stuff Churchill has written is worth checking out too (his multi-volumes on the Second Wold War and The History of the English-Speaking Peoples are good reads).

 
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Don Quixote said:
I think I've stumbled into doing the bio on every President thing, but we'll see how long it lasts.

I've already read bios on about half of the Presidents -- just filling in the gaps.

Just read Ted Widmer's bio on Martin Van Buren from the Schlesinger series. He was the first chronologically that I had not read a bio on yet. The books in the series are not as comprehensive and well-sourced as I typically like my bios, but it serves its purpose where the options are a bit limited.

Now on Gail Collins' bio on William Henry Harrison from the same series.
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I've been keeping this going, but not sure how much longer I can go before I need a break.

The William Henry Harrison one was about the right length for someone who was only President for 30 days.  But, I learned a bit more about his career before becoming President and it has a lot on the election of 1840, which was a fun campaign year.

After that, I read Edward Crapol's John Tyler: The Accidental President.  Pretty solid account of his life, but with maybe not enough pre-Presidency and domestic policy.  It focuses a lot on his foreign policy, which was interesting and the author makes the case for Tyler being a lot more relevant/important than he is typically given credit for, especially with respect to Hawaii, Texas, and China.

About to start Robert Merry's A Country of Vast Designs: James K. Polk, the Mexican War, and the Conquest of the American Continent.  At least Polk is a bit of a big one to keep the run going.  Surprised I haven't read a bio on Polk before.

 
Don Quixote said:
The Last Lion trilogy by Manchester is the one that I'd recommend the most. As good as history gets.
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BIography simply doesn't get any better than the first two books of this series. The first book, while incredible throughout, is worth it just for the preamble alone.

The 3rd book is a little dry, due to it mostly being written by Paul Reid, but its still worth reading.

 
Finished up listening to my first Lee Child book, Killing Floor the first Jack Reacher novel. I liked it though Lee is a little unneccesarily detailed from time to time.

Started reading Inferno by Dan Brown.

Downloaded the 2nd Reacher audiobook from the library but haven't started yet.

 
Instead of Dark Tower 3, I went with..

Boy's Life:

I might have read the start of this or the beginning? but not the whole thing.  It was a little hit or miss with me, but mostly a hit.  There is some silly stuff in here, but there is also some brilliant #### that really took me back to the feeling of being that age again.   There were chapters that I read over again right after I read them the first time, which never happens.  Really good coming of age book. 

The Voice of the Night:

OOff.  This one was pretty damb bad.  Just silly the age of the people in the book and how unbelievable their actions were. Not sure I have read a Koontz book before.  This was just a random one I got at the book sale I talked about, but was looking forward to it ending about 1/3 the way through this thing. 

 
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