Whatcha Readin' October 2011 Edition

Happy Halloween everyone! Fall is here and today was just an amazing day weather-wise. Enjoy the crisp air and the falling leaves!

Linkto last month’s thread.

Just posted this in the other thread:

Poul Anderson’s The Long Night, a short story collection with the theme of the fall of the Terran Empire.

Still checking out Lonely Planet’s Washington DC guidebook.

I just picked it up at the library - “Inside Wikileaks.” It should be interesting. :slight_smile:

Count Zero - Wm Gibson. It’s about time I read the book.

The Poison King: The Life and Legend of Mithradates, Rome’s Deadliest Enemy by Adrienne Mayor.

I just finished The Lost Chalice: The Epic Hunt for a Priceless Masterpiece by Vernon Silver. History, Archaeology and Scandal all wrapped in a Mystery. I recommend it.

Just finished Adam Nicolson’s God’s Secretaries, about the translation and writing of the King James Bible, and it was pretty good, with lots of detail on the personalities and politics involved.

Am now starting George R.R. Martin’s A Dance with Dragons. Too soon to have an opinion on it yet.

Finished *Wayfinder *the second in C. E. Murphy’s *Truthseeker *dualogy. In general I like Murphy’s stuff and this was no exception. It moved quickly enough to be interesting and had a few twists. It wasn’t the best of her work, but I don’t mind that I have read it. She left a little wiggle room such that there might be more, if her fans clamor for them, but I hope she lets it be.

I’m about halfway through The Believing Brain: From Ghosts and Gods to Politics and Conspiracies—How We Construct Beliefs and Reinforce Them as Truths by Michael Shermer. I don’t disagree with his theory, but man - he’s a complete ass. I can’t stand him. Snarky comments about “believers” abound. It seems like someone who has written a whole book about how people construct their beliefs first, then add evidence to support those beliefs later, should be a little more self-aware about his own beliefs.

Just started The Nature of Monsters by Clare Clark

I’m currently about halfway through Dickens’ “David Copperfield” and just starting “Baroque Music” by Claude V. Palisca. I figure I’ll move on to Robert Monroe’s “Ultimate Journey” when I’m done with those.

How are you getting along with David Copperfield? It’s definitely in my top 5.

Clearly. :smiley: It’s been great so far. I’ve really enjoyed what little Dickens I’ve read. His work is great for characters.

Finished Ready Player One; followed with 97 Orchard Street; now reading A Stranger in Mayfair, fourth in the Charles Lenox mystery series by Charles Finch.

What did you think? I just started the book this morning and it seems like a true geekgasm. The idea of it seems pretty neat to me.

I was heading to the bookstore with the intention of buying Reamde, but I heard a thing on the radio about Ready Player One and decided on it in the store.

I liked it better than I expected to. It’s been getting great reviews, but didn’t really seem like my kind of book as I am not a gamer. Very likable narrator and you really root for him.

C3, I don’t like Shermer much either. I really wanted to like Why People Believe Weird Things, but the writing style is just the opposite of engaging. (I also can’t help but think of the fact that he’s a Libertarian, which annoys me.)

Anyway, I’m reading A Night in the Lonesome October. I’m cheating and reading as much as I like, rather than trying to read it day-for-day. I’m also a couple chapters in to The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie (thanks to **Tapiotar **who suggested it in my Fall reading thread), and I’m concurrently reading 123 Magic, as my 3yo has had her obnoxious levels set to 11 lately. (I like it, by the way!)

I love that book, but I’m a big fan of Zelazny. I never have managed to read a chapter a day. I always tear through it in a sitting.

I’m a third into the Helliconia trilogy (about to finish Helliconia Spring) by Bryan Aldiss. Once finished I have finished I have The Sisters Brothers lined up by Patrick deWitt