The Flying Elvis
Footballguy
Read that off of a suggestion in here something like 5 years ago. Love the book. Also would put it up there on my favorite list.
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Whatcha readin now? (book, books, reading, read) (2 Viewers)
- Thread starter shuke
- Start date
Sand
Footballguy
I am working my way through the audiobook and the main character comes off as mewling and pretty repetitive. I still like the book and look forward to finishing it, though.
The Flying Elvis
Footballguy
I could see how it could go like that as an audiobook... IMO one of the main strengths of Shantaram is its beautiful prose. I would definitely say its a book that needs to be read rather than heard.
D_House
Footballguy
John Irving's A Son of the Circus. As usual with Irving, excellent characters and several great comic moments. The novel uses India as a setting in which to explore a variety of cultural outsiders (immigrants, homosexuals, transgenders, and dwarfs). I liked the mystery/crime twist on this one, something that Irving hadn't tackled before to my knowledge. I definitely recommend this to Irving fans, but it might not be the best place to start to readers unfamiliar with his earlier novels.
Black Sunshine
Footballguy
Great book.
JFT Ben
Footballguy
Reread "Beat the Reaper" again, love the easy summer reads. The Song of Fire and Ice series left me a little tired from heavy, complex reading and need some lighter fluff stuff for now. About to pick up King's 12/22/63 from the library, the last King book I read (Under the Dome) was good until the ending.
Am working through Chelsea Handler's audiobooks (never heard of her until recently), not great, not very funny, a few amusing stories, easy car fare though.
Am working through Chelsea Handler's audiobooks (never heard of her until recently), not great, not very funny, a few amusing stories, easy car fare though.
Socrates11
Footballguy
Recently started The Family Corleone, the prequel to the Godfather written by Ed Falco based on a screenplay by Mario Puzo. Really good so far and I still haven't gotten to the meat of it yet.
Bengalsfan
Footballguy
Read the 1st Reacher book at the beach last week....enjoyed it despite what I felt to be subpar writing skills.....good story and character though....kept me engaged. Then read "Before I go to sleep" in two days. Interesting story....the wife is reading it now. Thriller about a woman whose memory is bascially lost each night due to an accident earlier in her life......she begins to secretly journal every day and then read the journal each morning.....slowly starts to piece together that what she is being told about her life each day may not be the whole story.....was a good beach read.
Current stack of books checked out from the library include:
Term Limits and Transfer of Power by Vince Flynn (have never read any of his books)
Found (and it's two sequels) by Haddix
The Paradise Prophecy by Robert Brown
Divergent by Roth
Cold Glory by Anderson
The Help by Stockett
Tripwire by Child (another Reacher book)
The Glorious Cause by Sharra (part two of his Revolutionary War books...just finished the 1st one a couple of weeks ago and really enjoyed)
Just got word that the copy of Ready Player One by Cline that I had requested is ready at the library....it's a 14 day checkout so I'd better snag it this afternoon and read it first.
I love summer reading....I'm a teacher and take full advantage of my summers off to read as much as possible.
Current stack of books checked out from the library include:
Term Limits and Transfer of Power by Vince Flynn (have never read any of his books)
Found (and it's two sequels) by Haddix
The Paradise Prophecy by Robert Brown
Divergent by Roth
Cold Glory by Anderson
The Help by Stockett
Tripwire by Child (another Reacher book)
The Glorious Cause by Sharra (part two of his Revolutionary War books...just finished the 1st one a couple of weeks ago and really enjoyed)
Just got word that the copy of Ready Player One by Cline that I had requested is ready at the library....it's a 14 day checkout so I'd better snag it this afternoon and read it first.
I love summer reading....I'm a teacher and take full advantage of my summers off to read as much as possible.
Bengalsfan
Footballguy
Ended up reading Calico Joe by Grisham real quick instead.....enjoyed it.....even teared up a bit toward the end......
now on to Ready Player One (not sure about this one despite the great reviews....I'll give it a shot and see if it grabs me) and then One Second After.....then I'll work on my list above a little more.
now on to Ready Player One (not sure about this one despite the great reviews....I'll give it a shot and see if it grabs me) and then One Second After.....then I'll work on my list above a little more.
KarmaPolice
Footballguy
Got sucked into the first season on DVD, so I am going to try out the Song of Fire and Ice series. This goes against 3 things I usually don't read for books: fantasy, books more than 6/700 pages, and books where I have already seen the show/movie for. HOWEVER, I am about 200 pages into Game of Thrones and could tell you that I probably wouldn't have gotten this far if I hadn't seen the show and heard the different names pronounced and gotten a feel for the lay of the land. Thought about just jumping into the 2nd book, but I think I made the correct decision as some stuff is already making a little more sense now.
The book is very close to the show - does this hold true for the 2nd book vs. Season 2?
The book is very close to the show - does this hold true for the 2nd book vs. Season 2?
D_House
Footballguy
I recently read 1999 Man Booker award winner Disgrace, by JM Coetzee. I'd previously read Waiting for the Barbarians by the same author, and I have come away duly impressed with this South African writer's work. He seems like a throwback. He tackles "big topics" in the context of his stories, which often focus and very small casts of characters. He's definitely a cynic, and Disgrace paints a pretty bleak picture of post-apartheid South Africa in which the fall of the protagonist (a privileged white professor) mirrors that of the ruling class of the country. This book merits multiple reads, it's the kind of work that would be great for a book club or a literature class. Highly recommended.
Prince Myshkin
Footballguy
I felt the same way about the first Reacher book. good character, but kind of "meh"...but it made me want to read another. After the 2nd or 3rd, I was hooked, and just finished up the last one this weekend. I'm starting on the Rapp books now.
same here. it took me a couple of weeks to get into summer reading mode, but i've hit in full force the last couple...
Instinctive
Footballguy
After watching season 1, I too got into the books. It took me a very short amount of time to fly through the first 4 books...they're awesome.The show follows the books pretty closely, but you get a lot more detail and explanation of things in the books, and you'll find that a couple of the show's plotlines are altered from what the book does, but still bring about the same effect.
The 4th book is a bit slow. I wouldn't skip any of the books., and I would definitely recommend them. On my way to pick up the 5th one today.
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Swing 51
Footballguy
I'm about half way through The Sportswriter by Richard Ford - the first book in the Bascombe Trilogy. Second book in the series called Independence Day won the Pulitzer in 1995. The Sportswriter is (you guessed it) about a failed novelist turned Sportswriter in Haddam, NJ (fictional city) recovering from a divorce/death in family/etc. Pretty good so far.
Swing 51
Footballguy
I did not care for the second half of 11/22/63. The first half is awesome - if you've read a bunch of King classics you will recognize some characters. But, it seems like King doesn't know how to finish a book these days.
shader
Footballguy
So I was looking for another book in the "fantasy" realm. Found "Acacia - The War With the Mein" by David Anthony Durham.
I'm 250 pages in, and it looks really promising at this point. Best part is that the entire trilogy is already written. Book got a lot of good reviews, won some awards, and got some great pub from George Martin.
I'm 250 pages in, and it looks really promising at this point. Best part is that the entire trilogy is already written. Book got a lot of good reviews, won some awards, and got some great pub from George Martin.
shader
Footballguy
I did like the 2nd half, but I agree that the first half was AWESOME. I remember being halfway through and thinking "this is possibly the best book I've ever read". Still was a great book, and the ending wasn't bad either. But it's always annoying to see books or movies with the potential to be all time greats fizzle out a bit.
DocHolliday
Footballguy
I finally got around to reading World Without End by Ken Follet. World is the sequel (sort of) to Pillars of the Earth. Pillars was one of the best books I have ever read. I am about 1/4 way through World and it is very good but not as good as Pillar. That may be in large part due to the originality of Pillars. World is more of the same. I was hoping for more story twists but I still have a lot of book to go. Those books are hefty. World is about 1000 pages long.
Todd Andrews
Footballguy
Richard Ford is a great writer but many do not take to the Bascombe Trilogy. I just grabbed his new one Canada and hope it is good.
Bengalsfan
Footballguy
I just finished One Second Later......I need to buy some guns.....
Don Quixote
Footballguy
Recently finished this one. Caro as brilliant as always. While Master of the Senate is one of my favorite non-fiction books, I was not sure how much I'd enjoy this one, since I was expecting most of the book to be about LBJ's less-than-interesting time as VP. While there was a lot of that and LBJ's unhappiness during that period, the bulk of the book was the 1960 election and LBJ's first ~100 days in office after JFK's assassination. Gave me a new appreciation for the way LBJ handled that transition period.Just downloaded Infinite Jest, which I've somehow never read. I'm apparently a glutton for long tomes.For any fans of Robert Caro's volumes on LBJ, next volume has a release date: May 1, 2012.
Uruk-Hai
Footballguy
Is that the one set near Ashville? I read it awhile back. The author did a good job with the nuts-and-bolts of the disaster (at least, I thought so not knowing a damned thing about it beforehand). Characters and dialogue left something to be desired IMO, though I don't think he intended the book to be character-driven.I finished Skippy Dies a week or so ago and, man, is that a good book. It's fairly long - 600+ pages - but reads easily. It took me a few dozen pages to get used to the unique (for me) writing style, but once I did I flew through it. The writing is beautiful and the characters are memorable (one or two are pretty rote, but not terribly so).
flysack
Footballguy
Been meaning to read this for awhile now. Now that I'm done with grad school, maybe I'll throw it on the summer reading list.Currently enthralled with Proust. Reading In A Budding Grove and can't get enough. My goal is to read the entire six volumes of In Search of Lost Time within the next couple years.
flysack
Footballguy
Read In the Heart of the Country. It's very experimental/postmoderny, but an absolute brilliant novel. I read it in a grad seminar last spring and was blown away.
Bengalsfan
Footballguy
Currently reading "Inside 9/11: What Really Happened" by the staff of Der Spiegel Magazine.
Heart breaking.....gut wrenching.....
Heart breaking.....gut wrenching.....
Juxtatarot
Footballguy
I don't read as much fiction as many of you - maybe two or three books a year. However, I've gotten a few great recommendations from the thread, namely Skippy Dies and A Visit from the Goon Squad. I know those books are quite different, but if anyone has a "If you liked those, you'd certainly like ___________" recommendation, I'd love to hear it.
Barry
Footballguy
waiting acceptance.Goodreads group has been created.Name of group: FBGsI joined and inputted the last 7 books I read, I thought just from my rankings it would give me recommendations. But it is based solely on your friends? Lets get a fbg group going
Socrates11
Footballguy
Read Adam Carolla's Not Taco Bell Material. This book is more auto-biographical than his last one. Something has made me laugh out loud on nearly every page (course, I'm easily amused to take that for what it's worth).
Very funny book.
Very funny book.
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parrot
Footballguy
Do you listen to the podcast? I'm just wondering if it's fresh material in the book, or a lot of the same stuff he uses in the podcast.
JFT Ben
Footballguy
Just finished this one. I don't feel quite that strongly about the second half, but agreed the last 20% or so felt forced or rushed. Felt it was a better ending than Under the Dome though. Still, enjoyed it, fun summer read. Based on King's recommendation, I'm waiting to start "Time and Again" by Jack Finney.
TexanFan02
Footballguy
I had to read this for a literature class. I wasn't that impressed. Seemed pretty heavy handed. Of course, I HAD to read it, that may have affected my analysis.
Socrates11
Footballguy
I don't, but think I might start. Just read a section about his friend Ray and something he liked to do with water that literally had me in tears.The jist of the book is each chapter details the house where Adam was living and the hijinks he go into with his friends at the time. He lived in a lot of s--tholes doing menial labor before he got successful. Lots of good stories.
Todd Andrews
Footballguy
Almost done with short story collection Wild Child: and Other Stories by T. Coraghessan Boyle, one of my favorite fiction writers. Pretty great as usual.
Maelstrom
Footballguy
I strongly echo the sentiments about Under the Dome. That was the worst ending to a book I have read in years. 11/22/63 was much better, I actually enjoyed the ride on that book. I almost didn't read it because of my disappointment with Under the Dome, but saw some really good reviews here and other places so finally picked it up.'JFT Ben said:
The Juggernaut
The Man. The Myth
Recently read "The End is Now" by Rob Bennett. A story about the Rapture. Just horrible. He actually described scenes by invoking scenes from movies! Like "The two sides clashed together like in the battles from Braveheart..."
steelerfan1
Footballguy
shuke
Black Ice Skeptic
Arizona Ron
Footballguy
Just Listen - Mark Goulston
I finished this one a while ago but wanted to share because it really works. It's great book for any working professional but especially for senior management/executive types. Mark Goulston is a psychiatrist that consults to organizations and coaches executives. I’ve already used several of the techniques during negotiates when tempers start to flare with success.
I finished this one a while ago but wanted to share because it really works. It's great book for any working professional but especially for senior management/executive types. Mark Goulston is a psychiatrist that consults to organizations and coaches executives. I’ve already used several of the techniques during negotiates when tempers start to flare with success.
shuke
Black Ice Skeptic
7 months to read a book? I need to take a class on reading or something.Thought this was better thand AFFC, but averaging 5 pages a day, I can barely remember what happened at the beginning.
Next up: The Cypress House by Michael Koryta
I've heard some good things about So Cold The River, but nothing about this, but my buddy was giving it away.
Sand
Footballguy
Brady Marino
Footballguy
I'm on my third month of A Game of Thrones. It's ok, Shuke. Finishing all the books that GRRM has written so far will feel as big of an accomplishment as slaying an actual dragon.
Swing 51
Footballguy
I'm assuming you've read Drop City? Does it live up to the hype?
Uruk-Hai
Footballguy
Read that one awhile back. I liked it better than So Cold.... I think his most recent is called The Ridge and it was pretty good too. Kortya's sort of like Dean Koontz in his subject matter (or, at least how Koontz used to be - haven't read anything by him in at least 15 years), but he can actually write and he can deliver characters that aren't so wooden they'd make a 5th grader puke. I'm on Prince Of Thorns by Mark Lawrence now. It's one of those "gritty" fantasy works and is the first in a series. I haven't formed much of an opinion yet, but it's told in first-person and (so far) the narrator ain't a likeable chap.
Todd Andrews
Footballguy
Not sure which hype you mean, but Drop City is a typical TC Boyle book: well written, darkly funny, and very interesting.
Don Quixote
Footballguy
I read Isaacson's bio on Einstein a few years back (he also wrote the bio on Steve Jobs that came out last year). I enjoyed it. I thought he made everything easy to understand.
The reviews on amazon confirm it. Sounds like just what I was looking for.
