# Time for another "Whatcha readin'?" thread. **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [December 26, 2002, 6:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/time-for-another-whatcha-readin-thread/145003 "2002-12-26T18:50:18Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Biggirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biggirl/32/3294_2.png) [@Biggirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biggirl)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2002, 6:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/time-for-another-whatcha-readin-thread/145003/1 "2002-12-26T18:50:18Z")
I’ve got a gift certificate to B&N for Christmas and I need another “on recommendation of the SDMBers” book. I almost always have one of those in my bag. _Guns, Germs and Steel_ was excellent, _Demon Haunted World_ was unexceptional. To be fair, Carl was preaching to the choir and I grew weary of him telling me things I already know. The entire works of Lemony Snicket was fun, but damn was it expensive for a couple of days worth of reading. What do you all recommend? ---
**Author:** ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2002, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/time-for-another-whatcha-readin-thread/145003/2 "2002-12-26T19:01:16Z")
Nuthing yet - but I got a lot of book gift certificates for XMas and I’m gonna go nuts! ---
**Author:** ![Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tapioca_Dextrin)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2002, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/time-for-another-whatcha-readin-thread/145003/3 "2002-12-26T19:09:56Z")
I’m reading “The Black Death” by Philip Ziegler. Unsurprisingly, it’s about the Black Death. Spoiler: Poor Tom survived, but was never quite the same again. Oh, it’s a text book btw. ---
**Author:** ![Podkayne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/edb3f5/32.png) [@Podkayne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Podkayne)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2002, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/time-for-another-whatcha-readin-thread/145003/4 "2002-12-26T19:11:35Z")
I’m finally finishing _The Bourne Identity_, which is okay, but I’m not a big spy/thriller reader. (I got it when I was stuck at O’Hare for six hours because it seemed interesting but not very demanding.) The plot is much more interesting and deep than the movie’s. Same goes for the female protagonist! I’m also reading _This Is the Way the World Ends_ by James Morrow. It’s dated (Reagan-era cold war) but it’s pretty good if you like Morrow’s stuff, which is sort of hard to describe. I’m sure there’s a word for it . . . Real world setting, but with lots of fanciful elements. His more famous work is the _Corpus Dei_ series, where they find the body of God–huge, male, bearded, naked . . . Anyway, I this weekend I also hauled out _The City of Truth_, which is my favorite of Morrow’s books, about a dystopia where people cannot lie, or even bear to be around a lie (like, oh, say, many works of art.) I can recommend that book without reservation. Brilliant. ---
**Author:** ![Jonathan\_Chance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jonathan_chance/32/701_2.png) [@Jonathan\_Chance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jonathan_Chance)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2002, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/time-for-another-whatcha-readin-thread/145003/5 "2002-12-26T19:22:23Z")
Again? Ok… Her Majesty’s Wizard, by Christopher Stassheff Founding Brothers, by Josep Ellis. This is astonishing look at the founding fathers of the United States based upon their interactions. Just amazing. The Silmarillion, by JRRT. Only in dribs and drabs as I can take it. ---
**Author:** ![whistlepig](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/73ab20/32.png) [@whistlepig](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/whistlepig)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2002, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/time-for-another-whatcha-readin-thread/145003/6 "2002-12-26T19:36:56Z")
“Turn Signals Are The Facial Expressions of Automobiles” by Donald Norman. It’s about the design of every day things and how design does/does not work in specific instances. It’s the third Donald Norman I’ve read and I’m realizing that they are all pretty much the same and somewhat outdated because of the way the Web has changed some design and useability things. I would recommend “The Psychology of Everyday Things” by the same author. Even if you aren’t interested in design, it will change how you view good and bad designs in your life. “Photographing Montana - The Life and Work of Evelyn Cameron”. She was an early settler to eastern Montana who took photographs from 1894-1928. It’s interesting seeing the area where I grew up as it was 100 years ago. There are buildings I’ve walked in in some of the pictures and pictures of some that I’ve known only as wreckage. ---
**Author:** ![CyberPundit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/76d3ee/32.png) [@CyberPundit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CyberPundit)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2002, 7:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/time-for-another-whatcha-readin-thread/145003/7 "2002-12-26T19:39:43Z")
I am reading Red Mars by Kim Stanley Robinon: a sci-fi novel about the colonization of Mars. It’s pretty good though some of the technical details about Martian geological formations, climatic conditions etc. can be a little mind-numbing. A few maps and illustrations might have helped. ---
**Author:** ![Kaf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/fbc32d/32.png) [@Kaf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kaf)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2002, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/time-for-another-whatcha-readin-thread/145003/8 "2002-12-26T19:40:17Z")
I’m reading, _Catch Me If You Can_, which the movie is based on. Just got it for Christmas, it’s a quick read, but fascinating. Sitting right under that is _Stories and Poems for Extremely Intelligent Children of All Ages_ by Harold Bloom. It’s really fun and some good light Holiday reading, the type of book you can pick up and read a story or two when you have a second. Always fun to read really good kids books this time of year. ---
**Author:** ![Amp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Amp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amp)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2002, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/time-for-another-whatcha-readin-thread/145003/9 "2002-12-26T19:43:52Z")
I’ve recently picked up a copy of Allen Moore’s _WATCHMEN_ and just finished _The Dark Knight Returns_. Really enjoyed the Dark Knight. I’m about halfway through _WATCHMEN_ but I’m not to impressed by it so far which is kind of a bummer because I’ve heard so many goods things about it from this board. ---
**Author:** ![Tangent](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tangent/32/3098_2.png) [@Tangent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tangent)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2002, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/time-for-another-whatcha-readin-thread/145003/10 "2002-12-26T20:20:52Z")
I’m reading the Homecoming Series by Orson Scott Card–just about to start on book 4. Also, my ‘bathroom book’ right now is _A Room with a View_ by E.M. Forster. Oh, and I’m also reading _Tales from Watership Down_, one tale at a time. The legends of El-ahrairah were some of my favorite parts of _Watership Down_, so I am definitely enjoying this. ---
**Author:** ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2002, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/time-for-another-whatcha-readin-thread/145003/11 "2002-12-26T20:36:36Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Jonathan Chance \* > \*\*Again? > > Ok… > > Her Majesty’s Wizard, by Christopher Stassheff > > The Silmarillion, by JRRT. Only in dribs and drabs as I can take it. \*\* I enjoyed Her Majesty’s Wizard and if you like it I encourage you to try a few of the sequels - but after a while they are just redundant. I could not finish the Silmarillion - but Guy Gavriel Kay, who helped Tolkien’s son finish it is a fine writer. Try is Fionvar Tapestry if you get a chance. ---
**Author:** ![Avalonian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ee7513/32.png) [@Avalonian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Avalonian)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2002, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/time-for-another-whatcha-readin-thread/145003/12 "2002-12-26T20:40:44Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Tangent \* > \*\*Oh, and I’m also reading _Tales from Watership Down_, one tale at a time. The legends of El-ahrairah were some of my favorite parts of _Watership Down_, so I am definitely enjoying this. \*\* I really enjoyed that one, **Tangent**. A great extension of the _Watership Down_ world, and some of Adams’ best work. Right now, I’m just finishing _The Book of Shadows_ by James Reese (not at all related to _Blair Witch 2_). I’m reading a hardcover edition, but it just came out in mass market PB, so it shouldn’t set you back much if you’re interested. It’s about an orphan who grows up among nuns in eighteenth-century France, who discovers that she is a witch. An interesting book… not at all what I expected, but worth reading. Probably most closely comparable to Rice’s _The Witching Hour_, but Reese is a better writer in my opinion. Once I finish that, it’s either the _DAW 30th Anniversary Fantasy Anthology_ (with a new Melanie Rawn story!) or Dan Simmons’ _A Winter Haunting_. We’ll see how I feel when I get there. ---
**Author:** ![Genseric](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Genseric](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Genseric)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2002, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/time-for-another-whatcha-readin-thread/145003/13 "2002-12-26T20:51:26Z")
I just finished Neal Stephenson’s _Cryptonomicon_, which I enjoyed a great deal, and I am currently in the process of reading _Snow Crash_ also by Stephenson, _The Handmaid’s Tale_ by Margaret Atwood, and _The Moon Is A Harsh Mistress_ by Robert Heinlein. I’ve barely even begun _Snow Crash_, but I liked Stephenson’s style in _Cryptonomicon_ very much, so hopefully _Snow Crash_ will please. _The Handmaid’s Tale_ I am enjoying much, especially the reminisces of the narrator’s past life, in contrast to her current experience. I have heard a great deal about _The Moon Is A Harsh Mistress_ on this board, and it’s pretty good. On the other hand, of Heinlein’s other books, I’ve only read _Stranger In A Strange Land_, and while I enjoyed it for the most part, I seem to detect a definite condescension towards women in these two novels, which bothers me a bit, plus the “dialect” Mannie uses in _Moon_ is a bit distracting so far, but not too bad. I hope to enjoy it, overall. ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2002, 9:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/time-for-another-whatcha-readin-thread/145003/14 "2002-12-26T21:04:35Z")
2 books, both presents. First, my secret guilty pleasure (blush): Exiles Honor, by Mercedes Lackey. Second, : A History of Salt. Next up: Re-reading the Silmarillion (for the dozenth or so time) ---
**Author:** ![Crusoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/49beb7/32.png) [@Crusoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crusoe)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2002, 9:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/time-for-another-whatcha-readin-thread/145003/15 "2002-12-26T21:10:01Z")
I’ve just finished Douglas Coupland’s _Girlfriend In A Coma_, which was slightly disappointing. Coupland obviously wanted to get across a Big Message about making everything you can out of life, but the grand finale jarred with the pace of the rest of the book. Currently re-reading Sebastian Moffett’s _Japanese Rules_, a history of football (soccer) in modern-day Japan. Quite interesting to football fans, very limited appeal elsewhere. ---
**Author:** ![bristlesage](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/edb3f5/32.png) [@bristlesage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bristlesage)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2002, 9:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/time-for-another-whatcha-readin-thread/145003/16 "2002-12-26T21:19:33Z")
The Silmarillion, which I’ve never read is next on my list. I’m going to treat it like a primary source historical document, since I understand it can be dry and is somewhat unfinished. It’s going to be great; I’m busting out notecards and pens of many colors and everything. WOO! I, too, recommend _Founding Brothers_, which **Johnathan Chance** mentioned. Great, fast non-fiction read. I’m just getting around to _The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay_. And I very strongly recommend any of Nick Hornby’s books, but most especially his latest, which is _How to Be Good_. Oh, and if you need something that’s near-mindless, I’ve just started Sue Grafton’s latest, _Q is for Quarry_. Nothing unexpected so far, but I like her writing style and the protagonist. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Carter\_of\_Mars](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/2bfe46/32.png) [@John\_Carter\_of\_Mars](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Carter_of_Mars)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2002, 11:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/time-for-another-whatcha-readin-thread/145003/17 "2002-12-26T23:17:09Z")
I just finished _Seabiscuit, An American Legend_ by Laura Hillenbrand. It’s an engrossing read, and the reader doesn’t have to be a fan of horses or horse racing to to enjoy this book. ---
**Author:** ![presidebt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/c37758/32.png) [@presidebt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/presidebt)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2002, 11:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/time-for-another-whatcha-readin-thread/145003/18 "2002-12-26T23:40:36Z")
Finishing up Mrs. Dalloway ahead of going to see _The Hours_ this weekend. Going to be starting _The Hobbit_ ahead of reading it aloud to my daughter. Rereads both, but good ones. ---
**Author:** ![Melon\_Farmer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/838e76/32.png) [@Melon\_Farmer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Melon_Farmer)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2002, 12:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/time-for-another-whatcha-readin-thread/145003/19 "2002-12-27T00:37:42Z")
**Genseric** , those two Stephenson books, plus The Moon is a Harsh Mistress are three of my favorite sci-fi books of all time. The other entries would have to be Gibson’s Neuromancer and it’s two sequels. I’m reading Theodore Rex which is very good, but not as good as the first volume, The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt. Low Life by Sante is next in the hopper. ---
**Author:** ![JessEnigma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/cdc98d/32.png) [@JessEnigma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JessEnigma)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2002, 12:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/time-for-another-whatcha-readin-thread/145003/20 "2002-12-27T00:55:58Z")
I’m in the midst of reading Terry Pratchett’s _Soul Music_. I also think I intended (for the zillionth time) to finish reading _The Two Towers_ while I was home for Christmas, but the bookmark in my copy is in the same place it was back in the spring, so I don’t think that’s going to happen. I’m also reading one of my Christmas presents, _The Magical Worlds of Harry Potter_ by David Colbert. It’s obviously written for children, but it’s certainly a good jumping-off point for more research if one is interested in such things. My copy of Bulfinch’s may come in handy soon, if I ever get around to actually doing any of the research I plan. I was reading _The Picture of Dorian Gray_ last week, but I got a bit tired of Wilde’s writing style and it was due back at the library, so I gave up. Maybe I’ll try again some time. I also have a copy of _Paradise Lost_ that I bought weeks ago but haven’t read yet. Hmm. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/time-for-another-whatcha-readin-thread/145003.md?page=2)