I’ve got a couple of novels going right now: a John Sandford one, “The Devil’s Code” (I think lol a bit late right now); I’ve enjoyed his “prey” books; this one is one of the “Kidd” series, which I haven’t delved into until now. So I’ll see how it goes. I’ve also got a ST novel going, “Home is the Hunter” – and it involves time travel, my favorite! And I’ve finally broken down and bought the first Harry Potter book. LOL
I have to try to stay away from book stores, especially if I’ve got money in my wallet! Most of my books I get from used/secondhand bookstores or thrift shops, so most are paperback. I’ve recently gone through many of the Agatha Christie books, which are still quite good, though a bit dated! lol especially when they’re talking about roadsters! I’ve also got several books I’d really like to read, including the Stephen King/Peter Straub collaboration… guess I should stay out of that thread here until I do get to read it! I could easily spend a couple of hundred dollars a month on books, though, if I let myself. Ah well… maybe I’ll hit the lottery!
In just a few days, I tore through a profoundly disturbing and extremely well written book called Under the Skin, by Michel Faber. It actually gave me insomnia. What could have been a lurid thriller turned out to be a thoughtful, horrifying examination of…Oh, I won’t spoil it.
I haven’t picked up a book since then, but I do intend to read Stephen King/Peter Straub’s Black House.
Just read The Truth, a Terry Pratchet Discworld novel, which I always devour.
The most recent novel that I highly recommend is Gates of Fire by Steven Pressfield. It’s the story of the Greek defense of Thremopylae, from a infantry squires point of view. Excellent read. A must for SCAdians.
So, how are 'yall liking King’s most recent stuff? Last I read was Desperation and could hardly get through it.
Cranky, I recently read in some woman’s mag (sorry no cite) that Maeve Binchy is now retired as she has made her money and is finished as a writer. More power to her but what a bummer.
I just started the new Terry MacMillan, A day Late and a Dollar Short and am enjoying it so far. I’ve been on an indulgence of Barbara Michaels lately - they’re tripe but fun tripe.
I recently really enjoyed e by Matt Beaumont a very cleverly constructed novel in email format.
Nadia Wheatley’s biography of Charmian Clift was excellent but I think I needed to do more background reading than I did.
Just finishing Twenty Years On, a collection of essays by people involved in the civil rights and republican movements of Northern Ireland in the late sixties/ early seventies. Of course it’s now about ten years out of date, but still interesting reading.
When I finish this I’ll start on Dirty War, Clean Hands by Paddy Woodworth, about the Spanish government’s anti-ETA death squads of the 1980s.
[QUOTE]
*Originally posted by Jeff *
**I finished Great Expectations (Dickens) and A Clockwork Orange (Anthony Burgess) not too long ago. Great books, both of them.
I read "Great Expectations in high school, but bought it a while back because I wanted to read it again. But I haven’t been able to get into it this time. I’m in the midst of “One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest” and then I’m going to start “A Clockwork Orange”.
Other than that I’ve been reading the Earth’s Children Series by Jean Auel for the millionth time while I wait for her to finish the next one… UGH!
Am in the final pages of The Bone People, a book by Kiwi author Keri Hulme. Somewhat difficult to read in terms of both subject matter and writing style, but very rewarding.
Before that I read White Teeth by Zadie Smith, a sort of Dickens-style novel about modern immigrant life in London.
Both really good reads.
I’ve just finished Alice K. Turner’s History of Hell, which was a very fun read. Also, I’m reading The Hobbit, which I haven’t read since high school. And Robert L. Forward’s very interesting Indistinguishable from Magic, which is all about how we could build real starships and space elevators and whatnot. He claims that we could build a dedicated antimatter factory which would bring the price down so that it would be more cost-effective than conventional rocket fuel!
I also suggest They All Laughed, which is a very fun history of the invention of the blender, the fax machine, and so forth.
Hey Solomon. If you like Heinlein, try “Time Enough For Love”. Lazarus Long is a character you just can’t miss. Hello White. Try “The Narrow Corner” or “Cakes and Ale” by Maugham. Both are good. As for me, I just finished David and Leigh Eddings “The Redemption Of Althalus”. Let me know of any good book. Thanks in advance. Croaker…
The Blind Assassin by Margaret Atwood. Atwood has that whole aging thing nailed. I really identified with the narrator.
Master of the Day of Judgment by Leo Perutz – a 30’s psychological detective story. Not sure where I heard about this writer – it was somewhere on line (I keep track of these things), but a virus took (renamed) my files at about the time I found the book. So if it was someone here on the Dope, thank you! I love this writer and have found more of his stuff.
Just started The Man Who Loved Children by Christina Stead, in the Everyman’s Library edition. I’m starting to think if I read all the Everyman’s books, I could consider myself well-read. What a great idea, reprinting good old stuff. The only downside is no dust jacket.
AuntiePam- Hey again! I always seem to find you on the book threads. Re:Blind AsassinReally? Maybe it’s an age thing, because I could never identify with that protagonist, but my mom (obviously older than I) really could. I mean the book in general was good, I just didn’t really like that character. Hmm. Or any of them for that matter, actually. Ah well.
As for books I’ve read recently…I just finished The Franchise Affair by Josephine Tey. It’s a mystery novel about a young girl who claims to be kidnapped and forced to do servant’s work by two women, before she escapes. Quite engrossing, I thought.
I’m currently reading Journey to the West. It’s a very old (the current version was set down in the 1500’s, and the story is much older than that) classic Chinese fantasy novel about a monk traveling with his three disciples (Monkey, Pig, and Friar Sand) to the Western Heaven to retrieve the Buddhist scriptures. It’s stories are very popular and well-known in China, I’d say they are roughly equivalent to Grimm’s fairy tales here. The book is quite long, 100 chapters and about 1,800 pages. I just finished chapter 50, so I’m halfway done.
I’ve been slacking off on m reading lately, but one of the 2 books I’ve read most recently is Hubert Selby Jr.'s “Requiem For A Dream”…a book to be read only with no sharp objects or alcohol around (the movie of the book was the first movie to ever stun me into complete silence and put me on edge. The other is Will Self’s “How the Dead Live”, an utterly superb novel.
Waiting to be started:
Will Self’s “Great Apes”
Ray Kurtzweil’s “The Age of Spiritual Machines”
With all thats gone on in the last few weeks, I haven’t read as much as normal, but I did manage to pick up The Dirt, which is the Motley Crue biography. Yeah, it was trashy, but it was the best freaking trash I’ve ever read. Blows away any other “tell all” biography I’ve ever read.
I just finished The Fellowship of the Ring by Tolkien and A Kiss of Shadows by Laurell K Hamilton.
Now I’m reading The Two Towers by Tolkien and The Complete Adventures of Lucky Starr by Asimov. I’ve got an anthology called Zodiac Fantastic edited by Martin H Greenberg that I use as a “bathroom book”.
And this is far less than I usually read. Usually, I have about 4 books going at once.
I’ve also got several books I’d really like to read, including the Stephen King/Peter Straub collaboration… guess I should stay out of that thread here until I do get to read it! I could easily spend a couple of hundred dollars a month on books, though, if I let myself. Ah well… maybe I’ll hit the lottery!
Ah well.