# Okay, whatcha readin' \*now\*? **URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/okay-whatcha-readin-now/404779 **Category:** Cafe Society **Created:** [May 20, 2007, 1:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/okay-whatcha-readin-now/404779 "2007-05-20T01:42:03Z") **Posts on this page:** 20 **Page:** 3
### Author: ![Catamount](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/catamount/32/2840_2.png) [@Catamount](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Catamount) #### Post date: [May 21, 2007, 2:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/okay-whatcha-readin-now/404779/41 "2007-05-21T02:29:18Z")
I was reading **Sartor Resartus** , but I pitched it six chapters in because it made my brain hurt. So now I’m working on **The Dragonbone Chair** by Tad Williams. I’m about halfway through and it’s really really good. I may have to peruse more of this man’s writings. ---
### Author: ![The\_Universe\_Lashes\_Out](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8797f3/32.png) [@The\_Universe\_Lashes\_Out](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Universe_Lashes_Out) #### Post date: [May 21, 2007, 2:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/okay-whatcha-readin-now/404779/42 "2007-05-21T02:29:57Z")
[QUOTE=Little Nemo] Right now? This thread. [/QUOTE] **Right** now? My own reply as I’m typing it. I’ve also been reading “You Shall Know Our Velocity!” by Dave Eggers. It’s pretty good. Entertaining at least. ---
### Author: ![AuntiePam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam) #### Post date: [May 21, 2007, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/okay-whatcha-readin-now/404779/43 "2007-05-21T02:38:27Z")
[QUOTE=koeeoaddi] Instead, I started **A Very Long Engagement** by Sebastien Japrisot. **AuntiePam** recommended the movie, which was excellent. [/QUOTE] I went to Amazon just now to buy this book. I put the title in the search box, and up comes two separate listings for Engagement, followed by The English Passengers. Weird. 🙂 ---
### Author: ![Gordon\_Urquhart](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/db5fbb/32.png) [@Gordon\_Urquhart](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gordon_Urquhart) #### Post date: [May 21, 2007, 2:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/okay-whatcha-readin-now/404779/44 "2007-05-21T02:43:09Z")
I recently finished _The Maltese Falcon_ by Dashiell Hammett – it’s the second time I’ve read it; I have not yet seen the movie (Bogart version) but plan to do so soonly. I’m now about a third of the way through Michael Chabon’s _The Yiddish Policemen’s Union_, and absolutely loving it. It’s all signed and stuff, too – Chabon was here in Denver for a book signing last week. I was so pleased to find that my favorite current author is super-witty, super-sharp, super-friendly and super-gracious – the book signing was one of the highlights of my recent history. **Sarahfeena’s** recommended book about pie has made it onto my to-read list. ---
### Author: ![Frank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Frank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frank) #### Post date: [May 21, 2007, 2:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/okay-whatcha-readin-now/404779/45 "2007-05-21T02:48:56Z")
[QUOTE=Ukulele Ike] I personally have only read Ambler’s short stories and _A Coffin for Dimitrios_. [/quote] You, sir, are deprived. _A Coffin for Dimitrios_ is fairly typical of his plotting, though the innocent bystander (Latimer, in this case) takes more positive steps towards involvement in the situation than in most of his books. He generally had the innocent bystander get involved via naiveness or just not thinking. Pre-WWII, I’d recommend _Cause for Alarm_; post-war, I guess I like _Passage of Arms_ and _The Intercom Conspiracy_ the best. Still, the only Ambler book I thought was poor was his first. Even his pedestrian stuff is still enjoyable. (_Doctor Frigo_ is pedestrian.) [Eric Ambler](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eric_Ambler), for those reading along, was a writer of magnificent and influential spy/thriller novels. > [@](#): > > I had dinner with the guy in midtown Manhattan about 20 years ago. I am astoundingly jealous. I wish I had had the chance to meet him. ---
### Author: ![Sarahfeena](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sarahfeena/32/519_2.png) [@Sarahfeena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sarahfeena) #### Post date: [May 21, 2007, 2:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/okay-whatcha-readin-now/404779/46 "2007-05-21T02:59:49Z")
[QUOTE=Gordon Urquhart] **Sarahfeena’s** recommended book about pie has made it onto my to-read list. [/QUOTE] Excellent…I hope you enjoy it! It actually inspired my mother to look for a couple of the places in the book on her driving trip from California to Chicago next month. It really, really makes you want to eat pie. 🙂 ---
### Author: ![DoctorJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doctorj/32/2904_2.png) [@DoctorJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DoctorJ) #### Post date: [May 21, 2007, 3:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/okay-whatcha-readin-now/404779/47 "2007-05-21T03:08:54Z")
**The Raw Shark Texts** by Steven Hall. I’m about a hundred pages in; it started weird, and then got really weird. I’m enjoying it, though. ---
### Author: ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji) #### Post date: [May 21, 2007, 10:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/okay-whatcha-readin-now/404779/48 "2007-05-21T10:52:15Z")
[QUOTE=koeeoaddi] \ I just pitched **Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell**. I got half way through and just couldn’t keep going. It’s not that it’s a bad book, really. It just meanders and I have a progressively shrinkng attention span. I accept any blame you JS&MN fans want to shoot my way.\ [/QUOTE] Totally agree! I just couldn’t finish it. The footnotes were a big part of why I hated it. Some of them had more text in them then the rest of the text on the page. 1/3 of the way through I realized I just didn’t care what happened and put the book on a shelf. I’ll give it away now that I remember I have it. ---
### Author: ![Shirley\_Ujest](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/45deac/32.png) [@Shirley\_Ujest](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shirley_Ujest) #### Post date: [May 21, 2007, 10:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/okay-whatcha-readin-now/404779/49 "2007-05-21T10:59:46Z")
I recently finished **I am Jackie Chan: My life in Action** and have to say though the timeline of the book was a little off, it was such a fascinating read. Fascinating man. I am presently stuck for new material, so I am reading ( gird your loins, me hearties.) **Knitting without Tears \*\* by Elizabeth Zimmerman, Knitting for Peace Betty Christiansen and \*\* Knitting in Plain English** by Maria Something. Yarn Pron. ---
### Author: ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham) #### Post date: [May 21, 2007, 12:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/okay-whatcha-readin-now/404779/50 "2007-05-21T12:19:27Z")
Just finished re-=reading **A Treasury of Great Science Fiction, Vol. 1** – it’s one of the first SF books I ever read (picked it up cheap, because for over a decade it was a premium for joining the SF Book Club), and I recently bought a new set. I also just finished Christopher Moore’s first novel, **Practical Demonkeeping**. I’m starting his **Lamb** right now, along with re-reading **AToGSF II**. ---
### Author: ![pprgrl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f6c823/32.png) [@pprgrl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pprgrl) #### Post date: [May 21, 2007, 12:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/okay-whatcha-readin-now/404779/51 "2007-05-21T12:25:08Z")
Silverlock by John Myers Myers and Orlando by Virginia Woolf. ---
### Author: ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle) #### Post date: [May 21, 2007, 12:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/okay-whatcha-readin-now/404779/52 "2007-05-21T12:45:58Z")
I also read and enjoyed The Thirteenth Tale, **koeeoaddi**. Also, The Observations, which I’m pretty sure was a **twickster** recommendation. Just finished: Round Ireland With a Fridge, by Tony Hawks. Another board recommendation, I’m sorry I don’t remember who. Very nice and funny, kind of reminiscent of Dave Barry. It’s about a guy who hitchhikes “round Ireland with a fridge” to win a bar bet. It sounds like a wonderful country. Next up, probably: Confederates in the Attic: dispatches from the unfinished Civil War, by Tony Horwitz. Just quit on: Tracker, by Gary Paulsen, which I was reading to my son a chapter at a time. We were three quarters of the way through when we quit by mutual consent. My son chose Jerry Spinelli’s Maniac Magee for our next book. ---
### Author: ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster) #### Post date: [May 21, 2007, 1:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/okay-whatcha-readin-now/404779/53 "2007-05-21T13:28:39Z")
[QUOTE=koeeoaddi] Wheee… **twicks** liked the book I pimped. [pressing my luck] So, is \*\* Soldier of the Great War\*\* still in the queue? [/nagging] [/QUOTE] In the queue – and I’ll read it when I’m damn good and ready. (Vacation maybe? It’s awfully thick for the 20-pages-a-day pace that is all I can manage when I’m this busy.) ---
### Author: ![Greywolf73](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/d9b06d/32.png) [@Greywolf73](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Greywolf73) #### Post date: [May 21, 2007, 2:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/okay-whatcha-readin-now/404779/54 "2007-05-21T14:19:47Z")
[QUOTE=Dung Beetle] Next up, probably: Confederates in the Attic: dispatches from the unfinished Civil War, by Tony Horwitz. [/QUOTE] I think this book pops up in just about every “Whatcha Reading” thread and with good reason. I predict you’ll love it. It’s fantastic. I’ve read it at least six or seven times. I’m reading **[The Pesthouse](http://www.amazon.com/Pesthouse-Jim-Crace/dp/0385520751/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/002-1425603-5099203?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1179756740&sr=8-1)** by Jim Crace–a post-post-post Apocalyptic novel (it takes place at least 100 years after civilization bites the dust). Very bleak. It’s also very _The Road_-esque although Pesthouse doesn’t pick up the pace until about halfway through. It took awhile to get into but now I can’t put it down. ---
### Author: ![koeeoaddi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/koeeoaddi/32/408_2.png) [@koeeoaddi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/koeeoaddi) #### Post date: [May 21, 2007, 2:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/okay-whatcha-readin-now/404779/55 "2007-05-21T14:22:18Z")
[QUOTE=twickster] In the queue – and I’ll read it when I’m damn good and ready. [/QUOTE] …okay, then. I’ll shadddup already. 🙂 ---
### Author: ![AuntiePam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam) #### Post date: [May 21, 2007, 3:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/okay-whatcha-readin-now/404779/56 "2007-05-21T15:35:52Z")
I’ve got to stop reading book threads here. In the last few days, I’ve bought four or five books and I just ordered Pesthouse. Ditto on Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell. I complained about it over at SFF World and someone directed me to a review that helped me appreciate it – a little bit. So I finished it, but wasn’t satisfied. I thought the footnotes were the best part. ---
### Author: ![Jodi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/7feea3/32.png) [@Jodi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jodi) #### Post date: [May 21, 2007, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/okay-whatcha-readin-now/404779/57 "2007-05-21T16:24:51Z")
I’m re-reading the Aubrey-Maturin novels by Patrick O’Brian in order. I’m up to _The Far Side of the World_ (No. 10). And **twicks** , _A Soldier of the Great War_ is my favorite novel. I hope you enjoy it. 🙂 ---
### Author: ![rjk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ed655f/32.png) [@rjk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rjk) #### Post date: [May 21, 2007, 6:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/okay-whatcha-readin-now/404779/58 "2007-05-21T18:22:29Z")
[QUOTE=Jodi] I’m re-reading the Aubrey-Maturin novels by Patrick O’Brian in order. I’m up to _The Far Side of the World_ (No. 10). And **twicks** , _A Soldier of the Great War_ is my favorite novel. I hope you enjoy it. 🙂 [/QUOTE] I’m up to O’Brian’s _The Wine-Dark Sea_, first time through them. (I was stuck for a while because I was missing one from the middle of the series, and I try not to buy new books.) I just finished _Three Men in a Boat (to Say Nothing of the Dog)_ by Jerome K. Jerome, in an edition with his ghost-stories piece. I’d take a vacation with him! Next might be _The Long Wait_ by Mickey Spillane that I got as a birthday present. He’s not my favourite hard-boiled writer (that would be either Raymond Chandler or Lawrence Block), but he did some good stuff. ---
### Author: ![dangermom](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e274bd/32.png) [@dangermom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dangermom) #### Post date: [May 21, 2007, 6:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/okay-whatcha-readin-now/404779/59 "2007-05-21T18:40:24Z")
Oh, hey, I should say that someone recommended Mary Stewart’s _The Ivy Tree_ on here a while back, and I read it. Enjoyed it, so thanks very much! ---
### Author: ![Eleanor\_of\_Aquitaine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a88e4f/32.png) [@Eleanor\_of\_Aquitaine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eleanor_of_Aquitaine) #### Post date: [May 21, 2007, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/okay-whatcha-readin-now/404779/60 "2007-05-21T18:41:49Z")
I’m on a paranormal fiction kick - I’ve just finished Charlaine Harris’s _Altogether Dead_, Kim Harrison’s _For a Few Demons More,_ and Kelley Armstrong’s _No Humans Involved_. The Harris book was the best of those. Next is probably the newest Tony Hillerman mystery, _The Shape Shifter_. I’m waiting on new books due out in June from Tanya Huff, Janet Evanovich, MaryJanice Davidson and Laurell K. Hamilton (yes, I’m still reading those.) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/okay-whatcha-readin-now/404779.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/okay-whatcha-readin-now/404779.md?page=4)