# The Return Of... So what are you reading? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [February 24, 2003, 5:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-return-of-so-what-are-you-reading/157107 "2003-02-24T05:30:40Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Lisa-go-Blind](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7c8e57/32.png) [@Lisa-go-Blind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lisa-go-Blind)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2003, 9:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-return-of-so-what-are-you-reading/157107/41 "2003-02-24T21:24:37Z")
Right now (I think) I’m reading four books: The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand. I read Anthem a couple of years ago. I don’t like her too much, but my dad does. That’s irrelevant anyway, because I have to write an essay on it. Our Band Could Be Your Life: Scenes from the American Indie Underground, 1981-1991 by Michael Azerrad is my fun happy book. I got it because I like Husker Du, Sonic Youth, Beat Happening, Mission of Burma, and the Replacements, but it has also gotten me curious about the Minutemen, and has reinforced my belief that Henry Rollins is an asshole. I am also reading Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead by Tom Stoppard for my English class. I have to do a seminar on it, but at least I got to pick what book to read. I started 1984 by George Orwell a few months ago, but it’s been pushed to the backburner by all the other books I have to read (including the Harry Potter books). ---
**Author:** ![Gangster\_Octopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a8b319/32.png) [@Gangster\_Octopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gangster_Octopus)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2003, 9:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-return-of-so-what-are-you-reading/157107/42 "2003-02-24T21:54:37Z")
**The Worst Journey in the World** by Apsley Cherry-Garrard. A first hand account of the ill-fated SCott expedition to the South Pole. A little dry and slow at first it really picks up when Cherry-Garrard describes the hellish Winter Journey to the Emperor Penguin rookery. On deck… **The Miracle of Castel di Sangro** by Joe McGinnis **L.A. Confidential** James James Ellroy ---
**Author:** ![The\_Bad\_Astronomer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f05b48/32.png) [@The\_Bad\_Astronomer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Bad_Astronomer)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2003, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-return-of-so-what-are-you-reading/157107/43 "2003-02-24T21:55:58Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Meatros \* > \*\*Well, I just finished **Bad Astronomy** by our very own doper **The Bad Astronomer** , I thought that was a great book and easy to understand. I liked the style and the way the book flowed. \*\* Hey, thanks! That’s always nice to hear. I’m glad you liked it. And, to stay with the OP, I am reading **Beyond Velikovsky** by Henry Bauer. It’s a pretty fair assessment of the whole [Velikovsky](http://abob.libs.uga.edu/bobk/vdtopten.html) [affair](http://abob.libs.uga.edu/bobk/velidelu.html). Bad science never stops… ---
**Author:** ![scout1222](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/34f0e0/32.png) [@scout1222](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scout1222)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2003, 10:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-return-of-so-what-are-you-reading/157107/44 "2003-02-24T22:27:05Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Politzania \* > \*\*[I read _DMDTT_ and part of _GG&S_ last summer - for me, Dead Men was an easier read in terms of the writing. GG&S was just too textbooky for my tastes at the time. \*\* That’s good to know. I like to balance my reading out. One light, easy read, then I’ll delve into something deeper. Since I’m reading fluff right now, I guess GG&S will be up next if it’s a little more “academic”. I just can’t be too intelligent for too long of a stretch. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Avalonian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ee7513/32.png) [@Avalonian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Avalonian)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2003, 11:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-return-of-so-what-are-you-reading/157107/45 "2003-02-24T23:02:02Z")
**swannguy** , I’ve just recently “discovered” Saramago for myself. I just finished _All the Names_ and I really liked it, though I see what you mean about his style. I want to find _Blindness_ soon and see what that’s like. Right now I’m wading through the biography _John Adams_ by David McCullough. It slow reading, but good stuff. McCullough really does a nice job capturing the time, and he has a lot of interesting insights to share. ---
**Author:** ![SojournerSamson](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/67e7ee/32.png) [@SojournerSamson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SojournerSamson)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2003, 11:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-return-of-so-what-are-you-reading/157107/46 "2003-02-24T23:23:54Z")
Just read and loved “Salt” by Mark Kurlansky. A strong reccomendation to young readers and their teachers. To celebrate the season:“Lincoln and the Law, " Lincoln in New York” and AnthonySampson’s “Mandela” (four stars) also “Real Thai-Best of Thailand’s Regional Cooking” ---
**Author:** ![Lsura](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7993a0/32.png) [@Lsura](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lsura)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2003, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-return-of-so-what-are-you-reading/157107/47 "2003-02-24T23:52:14Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Rubystreak \* > \*\*jjim, I really liked His Dark Materials. I read it over the summer and was pretty impressed. Damn heavy stuff for kids’ lit. > \*\* I tried to read them last summer and couldn’t get past the first one - they kept losing me. I may try again soon, if I can find them in the library. My current reading includes _Free Expression in the Age of the Internet_, _The Digital Dilemna: Intellectual Property in the Age of the Internet_, _The Responsive Public Library_ and a bunch of articles on reserve in the library. Beyond class, I’m not finding much reading time lately, so for light reading just before bed, I pulled _Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban_ off the bookshelf - because I’ve read it before, I won’t get so sucked in that I forget to go to sleep. ---
**Author:** ![II\_Gyan\_II](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/bbe5ce/32.png) [@II\_Gyan\_II](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/II_Gyan_II)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2003, 12:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-return-of-so-what-are-you-reading/157107/48 "2003-02-25T00:22:50Z")
I’m about to start with Gogol’s **Dead Souls** and Proust’s **Swann’s Way**. I’ve been told to drop the latter. Let’s see. ---
**Author:** ![Rubystreak](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Rubystreak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rubystreak)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2003, 12:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-return-of-so-what-are-you-reading/157107/49 "2003-02-25T00:28:59Z")
Johnny LA, I don’t know much about the “editions,” but I’ve enjoyed most of the books you listed. If you haven’t read Neal Stephenson’s Snow Crash, you should. I’m a big fan of speculative fiction. Though I am an English teacher and I should be reading The Classics, I enjoy sci fi/horror/fantasy a hell of a lot. I also like fiction with a twist, like The Lovely Bones. Basically, during the school year, I want to read books that are FUN, not ponderous. I think enough on the company’s dime. ---
**Author:** ![Fionn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/a587f6/32.png) [@Fionn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fionn)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2003, 12:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-return-of-so-what-are-you-reading/157107/50 "2003-02-25T00:51:57Z")
Steven Pinker’s _The Language Instinct_ I just read Dorothy Allison’s _Skin: Writings on Race, Class and Gender_ and George Orwell’s _Homage to Catalonia_. Both of them were excellent. ---
**Author:** ![Journeyman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/779978/32.png) [@Journeyman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Journeyman)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2003, 12:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-return-of-so-what-are-you-reading/157107/51 "2003-02-25T00:55:26Z")
In the middle of Bernard Cornwell’s Warlord Series right now, just finished **Enemy of God** and am starting into **Excalibur**. I’m really enjoying it. It’s an enthralling retelling of the Arthur stories, but Cornwell combines a sort of semi-historical accuracy with a sense of wonder. He sets his story in Britan as it was circa 500 a.d. So Arthur’s horsemen are not knights, they don’t wear platemail, and the castles are a mix of wood and stone. Christianity is not yet the common faith, it vies with the older pagan tradition as well as other cults introduced by the romans for influence. I’m liking it. ---
**Author:** ![monica](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a183cd/32.png) [@monica](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/monica)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2003, 2:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-return-of-so-what-are-you-reading/157107/52 "2003-02-25T02:58:09Z")
The Autobiography of King Henry VIII: With Notes By His Fool, Will Somers by Margaret George: Historical fiction (and a lot of fact) about King Henry VIII. Harry Potter y la Camara Secreta: Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets in Spanish- I am determined to have a better grasp of that language! For the Love of a Dog by Elisabeth Rose: Basically, sweet, heart-warming little stories about the author and the animals she’s come in contact with over the years. And, as soon as I get a chance to go out and get it, I am going to read Letters from the Earth by Mark Twain. I saw it recommended in GD by Deathstatic, and it looked interesting. Yeah, I should probably learn to read only one book at a time…but that just makes too much sense! ---
**Author:** ![GrandfatherTrout](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/f17d59/32.png) [@GrandfatherTrout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrandfatherTrout)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2003, 3:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-return-of-so-what-are-you-reading/157107/53 "2003-02-25T03:27:30Z")
Finally started Samuel R. Delany’s **Dhalgren.** It’s every bit as weird and fascinating as my very persistent sources had been telling me. Next up? No idea, but I bet it’ll be something on this list. The only thing I’m really chomping at the bit to read (Le Guin’s next volume of short fiction, **Changing Planes** ) isn’t due out 'till July, alas. So I think it’ll be something I’ve always meant to read but just haven’t. Some Wodehouse, for instance…hmmm. ---
**Author:** ![Orange\_Skinner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/3be4f8/32.png) [@Orange\_Skinner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Orange_Skinner)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2003, 3:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-return-of-so-what-are-you-reading/157107/54 "2003-02-25T03:32:59Z")
I’m two-thirds of the way into _Good Omens_, by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett. It’s dragging at the moment, but definitely had some good parts. My high-school principal actually recommended it to me, knowing I like things that are trippy and like Douglas Adams, whose writing the authors are compared to excessively. I _was_ also reading _The House of the Seven Gables_ by Nathanial Hawthorne, for the sole purpose of proving to myself that I can get through another Hawthorn book and not wanting my whole opinion of him based on _The Scarlet Letter_. But I haven’t touched the thing since last month. ---
**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:** [February 25, 2003, 3:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-return-of-so-what-are-you-reading/157107/55 "2003-02-25T03:49:11Z")
I just finished **Kissing the Gunner’s Daughter** by **Ruth Rendell** , which was definitely not her best book. In fact, it may be her worst. Very disappointing. Thanks to the “Funny Book” thread, tonight I’m starting **Confederacy of Dunces**. ---
**Author:** ![headchecked](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/258eb7/32.png) [@headchecked](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/headchecked)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2003, 4:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-return-of-so-what-are-you-reading/157107/56 "2003-02-25T04:26:18Z")
_Breakfast of Champions_ by Kurt Vonnegut, really good so far. ---
**Author:** ![swannguy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9de0a6/32.png) [@swannguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/swannguy)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2003, 3:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-return-of-so-what-are-you-reading/157107/57 "2003-02-25T15:00:38Z")
Quote: swannguy, I’ve just recently “discovered” Saramago for myself. I just finished All the Names and I really liked it, though I see what you mean about his style. I want to find Blindness soon and see what that’s like. Avalon - I think “Blindness” is his best…I’d suggest you have a try at “The Gospel according to Jesus Christ”. It sure gives you a new look on Christianity… ---
**Author:** ![Meatros](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Meatros](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Meatros)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2003, 3:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-return-of-so-what-are-you-reading/157107/58 "2003-02-25T15:09:27Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by The Bad Astronomer \* > \*\*Hey, thanks! That’s always nice to hear. I’m glad you liked it. > \*\* No, no, thank **you** for writing it!😃 I thought some of the examples you gave made the issues extremely clear. For example: Why is the sky blue-although I liked the technical explanation too, I still like how you condensed it into a nice easy explanation using stuff falling from trees. I was trying to explain the longer answer to my fiancé and I kept screwing up, so finally I relied on the short, sweet, leaves falling from trees answer (when I try to explain things I usually get tangled up in the explanation). I also like the humor you sprinkled into the book. The last chapter (on Hollywood mistakes in movies) was also great. Dang, I suppose I could go on and on… In any event, I suggest fellow dopers read it. ---
**Author:** ![Judith\_Prietht](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/b19c9b/32.png) [@Judith\_Prietht](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Judith_Prietht)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2003, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-return-of-so-what-are-you-reading/157107/59 "2003-02-25T15:22:02Z")
Sounds like I may have to pick that up, **Meatros**. I just finished Kazuo Ishiguro’s _When We Were Orphans_, which i give a resounding “meh.” I couldn’t get involved with the characters or plot at all. I’ve started _Plane Insanity_ by flight attendant Elliot Hester, and it’s really opening up a horrifying world of the nasty things people do on airplanes. While it’s not the best-written book, I’m enjoying the shock, repulsion, and giggles I feel when I read about all-out brawls in the cabin, hookers working the coach lavatories, and the woman who snuck an aquarium with octopi and fish into her carry-on. ---
**Author:** ![Edward\_The\_Head](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ce73a5/32.png) [@Edward\_The\_Head](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Edward_The_Head)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2003, 4:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-return-of-so-what-are-you-reading/157107/60 "2003-02-25T16:18:09Z")
I’m in the middle of _Lord of the Rings_ of which I read at night before bed, and _A Clockwork Orange_ that is my book I read on the train. I’m not sure what I will go onto next, I’ve read a bunch of books that I really haven’t liked lately. I need to go back and read some more Philip Dick and Kundera. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-return-of-so-what-are-you-reading/157107.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-return-of-so-what-are-you-reading/157107.md?page=4)