Whatcha readin now? (book, books, reading, read) (3 Viewers)

[prosopis]

I recently finished The Story of Edgar Sawtelle. I enjoyed but I did not like the way it ended.

I am currently reading World War Z. Fifty pages in and it is just meh to me. I will finish it though. After perusing this thread I have ordered Gone Away world by Nick Harkaway and Canticle for Liebowitz by Walter Miller.

Seems like I have been waiting for Cutting for Stone by Abraham Vergese for ever now. I hope it is worth the wait. I am currently #78 of 139 holds on 21 copies at the library. I have been on that list for well over a month now.

 

[gigantor]

just started World War Z

 

[roadkill1292]

America, 1908. Interesting look back at the country 100 years ago. Cars and planes were just getting ramped up. Anarchists abounded. Women wore ridiculous hats and weren't supposed to like sex.

 

[oso diablo]

I recently finished The Story of Edgar Sawtelle. I enjoyed but I did not like the way it ended.

I am currently reading World War Z. Fifty pages in and it is just meh to me. I will finish it though. After perusing this thread I have ordered Gone Away world by Nick Harkaway and Canticle for Liebowitz by Walter Miller.

Seems like I have been waiting for Cutting for Stone by Abraham Vergese for ever now. I hope it is worth the wait. I am currently #78 of 139 holds on 21 copies at the library. I have been on that list for well over a month now.

i just finished 2 books that were very well written, but ended quite annoyingly. Sawtelle is now infamous for that (i found out after reading it). The other was "In the Woods" by Tana French. great journeys, but awful destinations.i'm also reading Canticle right now.

 

[coldchill]

Just finishing up The Lovers by John Connolly. Freaking LOVE Connolly.

I'm waiting for The Lovers from the library. Have you read The book of Lost Things? Not his typical Charlie Parker mystery, but a wonderful read.

 

[SimonMoon]

Have any ofyou read Neal Stephenson's The Baroque Cycle? (Maybe it's ben mentioned, but GDB wading through 52 pages to find out...

It's a trilogy:

Quicksilver

The Confusion

The System of the World

Now, I'm nobody, right? Just some guy on a message board. It may help to know that I was an English major and I'm occasionally told that I write a fair stick. OK? So I'm nobody, but I have discerning taste.

READ THIS SERIES. If no book in recent memory strikes you as a possible candidate for the next Great American Novel, perhaps this is the one.

It's fiction, but using actual Personages of Historical Significance as jumping-off points for a whiz-bang story that will horrify, titillate, amuse, and edify.

READ IT.

That is all.

Oh, and I've read some David Foster Wallace. Brilliant mind, gone too early.

 

[TenTimes]

I read Down and out in paris and london a while back and really enjoyed it.

Can anybody suggest similar books? First person perspective of life in a different time and place.

 

[facook]

Just finishing up The Lovers by John Connolly. Freaking LOVE Connolly.

I'm waiting for The Lovers from the library. Have you read The book of Lost Things? Not his typical Charlie Parker mystery, but a wonderful read.

Yep. Have yet to read anything from Connolly that isn't superb.

 

[facook]

Just finishing up The Lovers by John Connolly. Freaking LOVE Connolly.If you're into PI/mysteries, especially with a creepy factor, check out his stuff. Great writer.Next up will be a few paperbacks for vacation: Boy's Life and Gone South by McCammon and By the Rivers of Babylon by DeMille.

Gone South was good, made better by a terrific ending. Boy's Life is a masterpiece.

 

[Sundays Rule]

just started World War Z

Just finishing this up, I loved it. Alot of great dramatic set pieces throughout the different narratives.

 

[HellToupee]

America, 1908. Interesting look back at the country 100 years ago. Cars and planes were just getting ramped up. Anarchists abounded. Women wore ridiculous hats and weren't supposed to like sex.

looks interestingsurprised its $21 at amazon

 

[roadkill1292]

America, 1908. Interesting look back at the country 100 years ago. Cars and planes were just getting ramped up. Anarchists abounded. Women wore ridiculous hats and weren't supposed to like sex.

looks interestingsurprised its $21 at amazon

It was ok but not $21 ok.

 

[Socrates11]

Just finished Patriots: A Novel of Survival in the Coming Collapse by James Wesley Rawles. For those of you that like 'End of Civilization' fiction I think you'll enjoy it a lot. I thought it was very good. Half novel-half survival manual with detailed descriptions of guns and ammo, military tactics, and other survival techniques. Definitely recommend.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/156975599...;pf_rd_i=507846

 

[HellToupee]

going on vacation the week after next. I tend to do a lot of reading during the two weeks. I plan on going through 4 books & and have 3 lined up to go but I'm looking for a 4th

I have .....Public Enemies by Bryan Burrough , Kitchen Confidential by Anthony Bourdain & Devil in the White City by Erik Larson.

 

[HellToupee]

America, 1908. Interesting look back at the country 100 years ago. Cars and planes were just getting ramped up. Anarchists abounded. Women wore ridiculous hats and weren't supposed to like sex.

looks interestingsurprised its $21 at amazon

It was ok but not $21 ok.

looks like its right up my alley but I've become accustomed to paying $10-11 for a book

 

[snitwitch]

just started World War Z

Just finishing this up, I loved it. Alot of great dramatic set pieces throughout the different narratives.

I just finished this as well, and loved it. I always liked Studs Terkel, and thought the gimmick of using his style to write about a fictional future zombie apocalypse was brilliant. Can't wait for the movie either...Now I'm trying to dive into Mark Bowden's Guests of the Ayatollah, about the 1980 Iran hostage crisis. So far it's not grabbing me like a couple of his other books have, namely Killing Pablo and Black Hawk Down.

 

[snitwitch]

Have any ofyou read Neal Stephenson's The Baroque Cycle? (Maybe it's ben mentioned, but GDB wading through 52 pages to find out...

It's a trilogy:

Quicksilver

The Confusion

The System of the World

Now, I'm nobody, right? Just some guy on a message board. It may help to know that I was an English major and I'm occasionally told that I write a fair stick. OK? So I'm nobody, but I have discerning taste.

READ THIS SERIES. If no book in recent memory strikes you as a possible candidate for the next Great American Novel, perhaps this is the one.

It's fiction, but using actual Personages of Historical Significance as jumping-off points for a whiz-bang story that will horrify, titillate, amuse, and edify.

READ IT.

That is all.

Oh, and I've read some David Foster Wallace. Brilliant mind, gone too early.

I couldn't get into the baroque books for some reason (tried like 3 times now), but LOVED Cryptonomicon (which shares some characters with the Quicksilver books?), and pretty much everything else I've read from Stephenson, including his latest Anathem. Snow Crash and The Diamond Age I consider bona fide sci-fi classics.As for DFW, I read Infinite Jest what seems like an eternity ago, and found it entertaining, if a bit complex. That guy would go off on tangents that make Neal Stephenson read like Hemmingway.

 

[kupcho1]

Have any ofyou read Neal Stephenson's The Baroque Cycle? (Maybe it's ben mentioned, but GDB wading through 52 pages to find out...

It's a trilogy:

Quicksilver

The Confusion

The System of the World

Now, I'm nobody, right? Just some guy on a message board. It may help to know that I was an English major and I'm occasionally told that I write a fair stick. OK? So I'm nobody, but I have discerning taste.

READ THIS SERIES. If no book in recent memory strikes you as a possible candidate for the next Great American Novel, perhaps this is the one.

It's fiction, but using actual Personages of Historical Significance as jumping-off points for a whiz-bang story that will horrify, titillate, amuse, and edify.

READ IT.

That is all.

Oh, and I've read some David Foster Wallace. Brilliant mind, gone too early.

Couldn't agree more. I think the Baroque Cycle is Stephenson's best. Half-cocked Jack is one of the best characters ever created. NS covers so much in the book it might be overwhelming for some, but he does it so effectively.DFW is also a favorite. Once I get through the current stack of books I think I'll read IJ again.

 

[flysack]

i'm also reading Canticle right now.

Nice. Great read.

 

[pecorino]

Have any ofyou read Neal Stephenson's The Baroque Cycle? (Maybe it's ben mentioned, but GDB wading through 52 pages to find out...

It's a trilogy:

Quicksilver

The Confusion

The System of the World

Now, I'm nobody, right? Just some guy on a message board. It may help to know that I was an English major and I'm occasionally told that I write a fair stick. OK? So I'm nobody, but I have discerning taste.

READ THIS SERIES. If no book in recent memory strikes you as a possible candidate for the next Great American Novel, perhaps this is the one.

It's fiction, but using actual Personages of Historical Significance as jumping-off points for a whiz-bang story that will horrify, titillate, amuse, and edify.

READ IT.

That is all.

Oh, and I've read some David Foster Wallace. Brilliant mind, gone too early.

I couldn't get into the baroque books for some reason (tried like 3 times now), but LOVED Cryptonomicon (which shares some characters with the Quicksilver books?), and pretty much everything else I've read from Stephenson, including his latest Anathem. Snow Crash and The Diamond Age I consider bona fide sci-fi classics.As for DFW, I read Infinite Jest what seems like an eternity ago, and found it entertaining, if a bit complex. That guy would go off on tangents that make Neal Stephenson read like Hemmingway.

just restarted Infinite Jest for maybe the 3rd time. i've read much of the rest of his work and feel i owe it to him after the suicide last year. such an incredible book.

 

[flysack]

just restarted Infinite Jest for maybe the 3rd time. i've read much of the rest of his work and feel i owe it to him after the suicide last year. such an incredible book.

A little overwritten in my opinion. I've started it a few times and put it down. His short stories and essays are where it's at. Novels, not so much.

 

[facook]

just started World War Z

Just finishing this up, I loved it. Alot of great dramatic set pieces throughout the different narratives.

I just finished this as well, and loved it. I always liked Studs Terkel, and thought the gimmick of using his style to write about a fictional future zombie apocalypse was brilliant. Can't wait for the movie either...Now I'm trying to dive into Mark Bowden's Guests of the Ayatollah, about the 1980 Iran hostage crisis. So far it's not grabbing me like a couple of his other books have, namely Killing Pablo and Black Hawk Down.

Will be interested to read your take on it. I've avoided it to this point because of some tepid reviews when it first came out. But with everything going on in Iran right now and some things I've seen recently on Cronkite's coverage of the hostage crisis I've had my interest renewed.

 

[jmcc]

just started World War Z

Just finishing this up, I loved it. Alot of great dramatic set pieces throughout the different narratives.

I just finished this as well, and loved it. I always liked Studs Terkel, and thought the gimmick of using his style to write about a fictional future zombie apocalypse was brilliant. Can't wait for the movie either...Now I'm trying to dive into Mark Bowden's Guests of the Ayatollah, about the 1980 Iran hostage crisis. So far it's not grabbing me like a couple of his other books have, namely Killing Pablo and Black Hawk Down.

At first I did not like this book but it grew on me. Certainly some portions were better then others. A movie would be interesting. Hope it is done interview style with cut aways of the action.

 

[Kumerica]

Just finished "The Know-It-All" and "Japanland." TKIA was excellent, Japanland was meh. Now, I'm deep into the first chapter of "Guns, Germs & Steel." I'll probably need something lighter to read alongside it.

 

[timschochet]

I am reading Gai-Jin by James Clavell, his last book before he died. It's not nearly as good as his 4 classics: Sho-Gun, Tai-Pan, Noble House, and King Rat. But it's better than Whirlwind. Here's how I rank "The Asian Saga":

1. Sho-Gun

2. Noble House

3. Tai-Pan

4. King Rat

5. Gai-Jin

6. Whirlwind

It's a tough call between #2 and #3; sometimes, I think Tai-Pan is a better novel, sometimes Noble House. Other than this, I'm pretty confident this is the correct ranking. Truly a magnificent writer.

 

[Sundays Rule]

Have any ofyou read Neal Stephenson's The Baroque Cycle? (Maybe it's ben mentioned, but GDB wading through 52 pages to find out...

It's a trilogy:

Quicksilver

The Confusion

The System of the World

Now, I'm nobody, right? Just some guy on a message board. It may help to know that I was an English major and I'm occasionally told that I write a fair stick. OK? So I'm nobody, but I have discerning taste.

READ THIS SERIES. If no book in recent memory strikes you as a possible candidate for the next Great American Novel, perhaps this is the one.

It's fiction, but using actual Personages of Historical Significance as jumping-off points for a whiz-bang story that will horrify, titillate, amuse, and edify.

READ IT.

That is all.

Oh, and I've read some David Foster Wallace. Brilliant mind, gone too early.

Couldn't agree more. I think the Baroque Cycle is Stephenson's best. Half-cocked Jack is one of the best characters ever created. NS covers so much in the book it might be overwhelming for some, but he does it so effectively.DFW is also a favorite. Once I get through the current stack of books I think I'll read IJ again.

Ive heard a lot about the Baroque Cycle but have always been scared off because I keep hearing it referred to as "math fiction" and i hate math. The only book i've read by him is Snow Crash which I though was fantastic but the thought of reading a soliloquy on calculus makes me shudder. Is it worth a read?

 

[SimonMoon]

Sundays Rule -

I must say: YES, worth the read. And whoever referred to it as "math fiction" is either confusing it with Cryptonomicon (which does sort of qualify, as it centers around cryptography and the advent of systems used in WWII and beyond), or they just can't handle far-reaching historical fiction that must, given the story-line concerning world markets and alchemy, touch on the basics of calculus and even geometry as it relates to 18th century architecture and so on...

But it's really a swashbuckling comedy more than anything else. The "math" is simply the bones on which the flesh of the tale hangs.

Or something like that.

Trust me: the math is not to be feared. In fact, you may find the disciplines more understandable as a result of Stephenson's gift for explaining some of those concepts.

 

[coldchill]

going on vacation the week after next. I tend to do a lot of reading during the two weeks. I plan on going through 4 books & and have 3 lined up to go but I'm looking for a 4th

I have .....Public Enemies by Bryan Burrough , Kitchen Confidential by Anthony Bourdain & Devil in the White City by Erik Larson.

excellent read.

 

[SimonMoon]

just restarted Infinite Jest for maybe the 3rd time. i've read much of the rest of his work and feel i owe it to him after the suicide last year. such an incredible book.

A little overwritten in my opinion. I've started it a few times and put it down. His short stories and essays are where it's at. Novels, not so much.

I can see where you're coming from on this. He just has so much to say...One of my favorite essays of his (or anyone's) is Consider The Lobster.

He goes to some lobster-fest in Maine and struggles with questions of animal cruelty, among other things. What I like is that he never really seems to come down on either side of the fence - he just throws out some observations, and leaves it to the reader to decide what's what.

 

[Kumerica]

I am reading Gai-Jin by James Clavell, his last book before he died. It's not nearly as good as his 4 classics: Sho-Gun, Tai-Pan, Noble House, and King Rat. But it's better than Whirlwind. Here's how I rank "The Asian Saga":

1. Sho-Gun

2. Noble House

3. Tai-Pan

4. King Rat

5. Gai-Jin

6. Whirlwind

It's a tough call between #2 and #3; sometimes, I think Tai-Pan is a better novel, sometimes Noble House. Other than this, I'm pretty confident this is the correct ranking. Truly a magnificent writer.

Tim, Gai-Jin does pick up a bit toward the end--if only a little.Huge Clavell fan here, and your ranking is correct. I feel the same way about Tai-Pan & Noble House. I think Tai-Pan is the richer, deeper novel, but Noble House has smoother storytelling and more re-readability.

 

[timschochet]

I am reading Gai-Jin by James Clavell, his last book before he died. It's not nearly as good as his 4 classics: Sho-Gun, Tai-Pan, Noble House, and King Rat. But it's better than Whirlwind. Here's how I rank "The Asian Saga":

1. Sho-Gun

2. Noble House

3. Tai-Pan

4. King Rat

5. Gai-Jin

6. Whirlwind

It's a tough call between #2 and #3; sometimes, I think Tai-Pan is a better novel, sometimes Noble House. Other than this, I'm pretty confident this is the correct ranking. Truly a magnificent writer.

Tim, Gai-Jin does pick up a bit toward the end--if only a little.Huge Clavell fan here, and your ranking is correct. I feel the same way about Tai-Pan & Noble House. I think Tai-Pan is the richer, deeper novel, but Noble House has smoother storytelling and more re-readability.

Clavell discussion here:1. Peter Marlowe is obviously Clavell himself. Did you notice that in both King Rat and Noble House, this character is always referred to as "Peter Marlowe", never just "Peter" or just "Marlowe"? This is the only character that Clavell does this with. It makes me wonder how true the rest of King Rat is. Was there a King? A Grey?

2. Have you read the updated King Rat? It came out a few years ago, but it's been pulled from bookstores for some reason. It includes several stories about the wives of the various men back home. It makes the novel even better.

3. Who had the 4th half coin? Now we'll never know.

 

[igbomb]

About halfway through Gates of Fire by Steven Pressfield.

So far it's an amazing book..

 

[pantagrapher]

just restarted Infinite Jest for maybe the 3rd time. i've read much of the rest of his work and feel i owe it to him after the suicide last year. such an incredible book.

A little overwritten in my opinion. I've started it a few times and put it down. His short stories and essays are where it's at. Novels, not so much.

I can see where you're coming from on this. He just has so much to say...One of my favorite essays of his (or anyone's) is Consider The Lobster.

He goes to some lobster-fest in Maine and struggles with questions of animal cruelty, among other things. What I like is that he never really seems to come down on either side of the fence - he just throws out some observations, and leaves it to the reader to decide what's what.

If you can find it, you should read the letters to the editor section from the subsequent issue of Gourmet (where the essay originally ran). Wallace discusses the possibility that not only do lobsters feel pain when boiled alive, but they feel much more intense pain than a human would under the same circumstances. It absolutely outraged many readers. I have to hand it to Gourmet—they took a tremendous risk sending Wallace out to do that piece, and I think in the long run it was a wise decision. It's one of my favorite magazines now.My favorite DFW essays are the one about tennis in the midwest, the one about the Illinois State Fair and the title essay from "A Supposedly Fun Thing..." I also love the title essay from "Girl with the Curious Hair." I think "Brief Interviews..." is his weakest collection (I'm not counting "Signifying Rappers" and "Everything and More," neither of which I've read yet). "Oblivion" and "Consider the Lobster" are both strong collections, but I didn't find anything spectacular in either one.

And I loved both of his novels.

 

[kupcho1]

Have any ofyou read Neal Stephenson's The Baroque Cycle? (Maybe it's ben mentioned, but GDB wading through 52 pages to find out...

It's a trilogy:

Quicksilver

The Confusion

The System of the World

Now, I'm nobody, right? Just some guy on a message board. It may help to know that I was an English major and I'm occasionally told that I write a fair stick. OK? So I'm nobody, but I have discerning taste.

READ THIS SERIES. If no book in recent memory strikes you as a possible candidate for the next Great American Novel, perhaps this is the one.

It's fiction, but using actual Personages of Historical Significance as jumping-off points for a whiz-bang story that will horrify, titillate, amuse, and edify.

READ IT.

That is all.

Oh, and I've read some David Foster Wallace. Brilliant mind, gone too early.

Couldn't agree more. I think the Baroque Cycle is Stephenson's best. Half-cocked Jack is one of the best characters ever created. NS covers so much in the book it might be overwhelming for some, but he does it so effectively.DFW is also a favorite. Once I get through the current stack of books I think I'll read IJ again.

Ive heard a lot about the Baroque Cycle but have always been scared off because I keep hearing it referred to as "math fiction" and i hate math. The only book i've read by him is Snow Crash which I though was fantastic but the thought of reading a soliloquy on calculus makes me shudder. Is it worth a read?

Let me get this straight. You thought Snowcrash - with its extensive discussions of Sumerian language, linguistics and nam-shubs - was "fantastic", but you're scared off of the Baroque Cycle? Seriously? No reason to be scared, it's a much better book.

 

[the rover]

Have any ofyou read Neal Stephenson's The Baroque Cycle? (Maybe it's ben mentioned, but GDB wading through 52 pages to find out...

It's a trilogy:

Quicksilver

The Confusion

The System of the World

Now, I'm nobody, right? Just some guy on a message board. It may help to know that I was an English major and I'm occasionally told that I write a fair stick. OK? So I'm nobody, but I have discerning taste.

READ THIS SERIES. If no book in recent memory strikes you as a possible candidate for the next Great American Novel, perhaps this is the one.

It's fiction, but using actual Personages of Historical Significance as jumping-off points for a whiz-bang story that will horrify, titillate, amuse, and edify.

READ IT.

That is all.

Oh, and I've read some David Foster Wallace. Brilliant mind, gone too early.

Couldn't agree more. I think the Baroque Cycle is Stephenson's best. Half-cocked Jack is one of the best characters ever created. NS covers so much in the book it might be overwhelming for some, but he does it so effectively.DFW is also a favorite. Once I get through the current stack of books I think I'll read IJ again.

Ive heard a lot about the Baroque Cycle but have always been scared off because I keep hearing it referred to as "math fiction" and i hate math. The only book i've read by him is Snow Crash which I though was fantastic but the thought of reading a soliloquy on calculus makes me shudder. Is it worth a read?

Let me get this straight. You thought Snowcrash - with its extensive discussions of Sumerian language, linguistics and nam-shubs - was "fantastic", but you're scared off of the Baroque Cycle? Seriously? No reason to be scared, it's a much better book.

Snow Crash is far more accessible, and as a fan of cyberpunk I thought it was much more enjoyable. I thought Baroque Cycle was interesting, but for me it sort of fizzled out. Great characters, but I just lost interest the further I read. By the end of the series, I was forcing myself to finish it.

 

[Sundays Rule]

Have any ofyou read Neal Stephenson's The Baroque Cycle? (Maybe it's ben mentioned, but GDB wading through 52 pages to find out...

It's a trilogy:

Quicksilver

The Confusion

The System of the World

Now, I'm nobody, right? Just some guy on a message board. It may help to know that I was an English major and I'm occasionally told that I write a fair stick. OK? So I'm nobody, but I have discerning taste.

READ THIS SERIES. If no book in recent memory strikes you as a possible candidate for the next Great American Novel, perhaps this is the one.

It's fiction, but using actual Personages of Historical Significance as jumping-off points for a whiz-bang story that will horrify, titillate, amuse, and edify.

READ IT.

That is all.

Oh, and I've read some David Foster Wallace. Brilliant mind, gone too early.

Couldn't agree more. I think the Baroque Cycle is Stephenson's best. Half-cocked Jack is one of the best characters ever created. NS covers so much in the book it might be overwhelming for some, but he does it so effectively.DFW is also a favorite. Once I get through the current stack of books I think I'll read IJ again.

Ive heard a lot about the Baroque Cycle but have always been scared off because I keep hearing it referred to as "math fiction" and i hate math. The only book i've read by him is Snow Crash which I though was fantastic but the thought of reading a soliloquy on calculus makes me shudder. Is it worth a read?

Let me get this straight. You thought Snowcrash - with its extensive discussions of Sumerian language, linguistics and nam-shubs - was "fantastic", but you're scared off of the Baroque Cycle? Seriously? No reason to be scared, it's a much better book.

Strange huh? Although to be honest i didn't realize Snow Crash would be going in that direction, by the time Hiro started into his discussions with that Librarian program (which was about halfway through) I was already hooked on the book and didn't want to stop. Maybe i'll give Quicksilver a go.Right now I have Perdido Street Station in the queue by China Mieville, anyone read stuff by him? This would be my first venture into his stuff.

 

[Sabertooth]

About halfway through Gates of Fire by Steven Pressfield.

So far it's an amazing book..

On the final chapter right now. This book is on my top 5 of all-time. Just a fantastic story. Reminds me some of how I felt reading the Illiad as a teenager.

 

[Yankee23Fan]

Finishing up God Emporer of Dune. Not really grabbing me as the others in the series did. I'm probably going to stop with this one and not move on to Heretics of Dune.

 

[Uruk-Hai]

Right now I have Perdido Street Station in the queue by China Mieville, anyone read stuff by him? This would be my first venture into his stuff.

I liked Perdido a lot, though I felt like there was more icing than cake when I was done. Mieville does a great job at world-building & the set-up is really good. I can't quite put my finger on what I felt was missing or wrong, but it's well-worth the read if you like sci-fi, cyber-fantasy, or thrillers. I also read his first novel (King Rat or something like that) but don't remember much about it. And I bought the Perdido sequel but never read it.

 

[IvanKaramazov]

I'm leaving town for two weeks to visit family out of state, and I'm taking the following with me:

Cloud Atlas (Mitchell). I've read this before, and I'm about halfway through a re-reading. It's almost better the second time through.

Nudge (Thaler and Sunstein). I try to read one or two "pop economics" books per year. This one wins after having been put off for quite a while. I'm a couple chapters in and it's only okay so far, but I assume it will pick up when the authors get around to discussing policy.

Consciousness Explained (Dennett). MT tossed out a recommendation of this in another thread, so I figured I'd give it a look. Based on what I know about Dennett's views on consciousness, I'm sure I won't agree with his argument, but at least it should be well-presented and give me something to think about.

The Plot Against America (Roth). This seemed to get good reviews when it came out a few years ago, and it sounds like something I might like. I've also never read anything by Roth before.

Not sure if I'll finish all those in two weeks, although I do tend to spend a huge amount of time just sitting around reading when I do this little annual trip. We'll see how it goes. I'm also thinking about picking up Pygmy (Palahniuk) sometime, but his books have kind of sucked as of late so I might just wait for it to turn up in the library instead.

 

[Pooch]

About 100 pages into Lake Wobegon Days by Garrison Keillor and it's pretty funny. I'm reading it in the voice that he uses on the weekly NPR serial and that helps.

I've never read Pynchon but there's a mention of his new book Inherent Vice in the latest Rolling Stone magazine that really sounds interesting. It's set in the psychedelic sixties/early seventies and supposedly features a Big Lebowski type character.

This may be the first Pynchon book I read. The review in Rolling Stone makes a lot of comparisons to Gravity's Rainbow which I've seen mentioned in this thread a lot.

 

[ConstruxBoy]

Just finished The Looming Tower this weekend. Fantastic book. Highly recommended.

 

[ConstruxBoy]

I'm leaving town for two weeks to visit family out of state, and I'm taking the following with me:

Cloud Atlas (Mitchell). I've read this before, and I'm about halfway through a re-reading. It's almost better the second time through.

Nudge (Thaler and Sunstein). I try to read one or two "pop economics" books per year. This one wins after having been put off for quite a while. I'm a couple chapters in and it's only okay so far, but I assume it will pick up when the authors get around to discussing policy.

Consciousness Explained (Dennett). MT tossed out a recommendation of this in another thread, so I figured I'd give it a look. Based on what I know about Dennett's views on consciousness, I'm sure I won't agree with his argument, but at least it should be well-presented and give me something to think about.

The Plot Against America (Roth). This seemed to get good reviews when it came out a few years ago, and it sounds like something I might like. I've also never read anything by Roth before.

Not sure if I'll finish all those in two weeks, although I do tend to spend a huge amount of time just sitting around reading when I do this little annual trip. We'll see how it goes. I'm also thinking about picking up Pygmy (Palahniuk) sometime, but his books have kind of sucked as of late so I might just wait for it to turn up in the library instead.

The only Roth I have read and I liked it, although I wouldn't call it a masterpiece.

 

[SimonMoon]

Pynchon is like an older version of DF Wallace: real wordy and impressed with himself - but that's not always a bad thing. These guys both have such a grasp of language, the more long-wided, the better, IMO. I find myself going back and re-reading passages just because they're so well put together. (Stephenson's like that, too.)

 

[igbomb]

Just finished The Looming Tower this weekend. Fantastic book. Highly recommended.

Good to hear. That's up next for me as soon as I finish the last 50 pages of Gates of Fire.

 

[Kendall]

Finished Speaker of the Dead last night. I really enjoyed it.

I started The Gone Away World this morning on recommendations in here.

 

[kupcho1]

4. King Rat

Coincidentally, King Rat is on Cinemax Asia right now. I'd never seen the movie (loved the book). Seagal's pretty good in this.

 

[the rover]

Finished Speaker of the Dead last night. I really enjoyed it.

I started The Gone Away World this morning on recommendations in here.

let me know what you think...I really enjoyed it, but the reviews have been mixed.

 

[igbomb]

About halfway through Gates of Fire by Steven Pressfield.

So far it's an amazing book..

On the final chapter right now. This book is on my top 5 of all-time. Just a fantastic story. Reminds me some of how I felt reading the Illiad as a teenager.

Finished this last night. Just incredible. From page one, I was totally engrossed. Among the very best historical fiction I've ever read, right there with Pillars of the Earth (though very different).

Question for Pressfield fans: Do any of his other books even approach Gates of Fire in quality? I haven't heard too much about his other stuff, but if it's in line with this one I'll read them all.

 

[Kendall]

Finished Speaker of the Dead last night. I really enjoyed it.

I started The Gone Away World this morning on recommendations in here.

let me know what you think...I really enjoyed it, but the reviews have been mixed.

I only got a chance to finish the first chapter yesterday, but so far I found myself rereading a couple of paragraphs. I don't know if I'm just getting used to how the book is written or if I was just kind of in a funk. Its been interesting so far at least.