# Whatcha Readin' (Apr 09) Edition **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 31, 2009, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-apr-09-edition/491443 "2009-03-31T15:30:37Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2009, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-apr-09-edition/491443/1 "2009-03-31T15:30:37Z")
Happy April Fools. Will you play any good pranks? I have finished Eragon and Eldest, which I reread because I received Brisingr for Christmas and realized that I did not remember too much from the first two. At the end of Eragon I wondered why I ever purchased Eldest. However, I thought that in Eldest his writing matured and found that it was not a bad read. I have started Brisingr. I am in the middle of Drood which is OK, but hasn’t caught me enough that I am consumed with it. [Last Month’s Thread](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=508586) ---
**Author:** ![bup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6bbea6/32.png) [@bup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bup)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2009, 4:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-apr-09-edition/491443/2 "2009-03-31T16:16:39Z")
[Before the Dawn: Recovering the Lost History of Our Ancestors](http://www.amazon.com/Before-Dawn-Recovering-History-Ancestors/dp/1594200793), by Nicholas Wade. Recommended on these boards by **John Mace** many moons ago, and I finally got ahold of a copy. So far excellent. ---
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2009, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-apr-09-edition/491443/3 "2009-03-31T17:04:20Z")
I’m finally breaking away from historical mysteries a bit. I’ve read a couple of YA books that I really enjoyed: _Harry Sue_, by someone I can’t remember and _No Cafes in Narnia_, by Nikki Tate. I bawled most of the way through Harry Sue. _sniffle_ I’m in the midst of many a series. Current reads (some are repeats from last month at this time): _The Sharing Knife: Horizon_, by Lois McMaster Bujold _A Murder on the Appian Way_, by Steven Saylor _Ship of Magic_, by Robin Hobb _In a Sunburned Country_, by Bill Bryson _The Vesuvius Club_, by Mark Gatiss _Loyal Disloyalty_, by Jeffrey Ashford I’m going to read books by Mike Carey, Fiona Buckley, Sharon Shinn, Rob Thurman, Sharan Newman, Gerald Durrell, Lindsey Davis, Lee Jordan and Susanna Gregory in the coming days. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2009, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-apr-09-edition/491443/4 "2009-03-31T17:07:38Z")
Just started _Wild Ducks Flying Backward: The Short Writings of Tom Robbins_. Very good so far. I’ve never read his short stories and essays before, and I can already recommend this for anyone who’s a Robbins fan. ---
**Author:** ![vdgg81](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/3d9bf3/32.png) [@vdgg81](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vdgg81)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2009, 5:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-apr-09-edition/491443/5 "2009-03-31T17:21:14Z")
I have just finished _A Short History of Nearly Everything_ by Bill Bryson and liked it a lot. I’m now reading _The Pursuit of Victory - The Life and Achievements of Horatio Nelson_ by Roger Knight and _Gödel, Escher, Bach: an Eternal Golden Braid_ by Douglas R. Hofstadter. I’m at the beginning of both and both seem very interesting. After I’m done with those I’ll try _Ancient Egypt - Kingdom of the Pharaohs_ by R. Hamilton and I’ll finish _Men, Women and Pianos - a Social History_ by Arthur Loesser which I was reading and stopped for some reason despite being fascinated by it. ---
**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:** [March 31, 2009, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-apr-09-edition/491443/6 "2009-03-31T18:20:22Z")
I sat up reading half of _Sandworms of Dune_ last night. It wasted no time getting to the exciting “what’s gonna happen next” part. Tried reading Ian McEwan’s _Saturday_, bounced it back in the bookdrop after about 50 pages. It looked like one of those “stand around and pontificate about These Degenerate Modern Times” books and I got no patience for that. It was replaced with George Eliot’s _Felix Holt, the Radical_ because I **do** have patience for people standing around 170 years ago pontificating about Those Degenerate Modern Times. ---
**Author:** ![Gulo\_gulo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bcef8e/32.png) [@Gulo\_gulo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gulo_gulo)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2009, 6:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-apr-09-edition/491443/7 "2009-03-31T18:47:52Z")
Since my last post I’ve completed: _The Secret Voyage of Sir Francis Drake: 1577-1580_ by Samuel Bawlf ~ Really liked this one, especially where comparing the older maps to the west coast of Vancouver Island. _Confederates in the Attic: Dispatches from the Unfinished Civil War_ by Tony Horwitz ~ Highly enjoyable and a bit unnerving. _Refiner’s Fire_ by Mark Helprin ~ slowly making my way through Helprin’s complete works. _Winter’s Tale_ is still my fave. _The Painted Bird_ by Jerzy Kosinski ~ Ugh. I’m positive that I’ve actually read this before but must have blocked it from my memory. _The Search for the Red Dragon (Chronicles of the Imaginarium Geographica)_ by James A. Owen ~ Second in the series. I wish the characters could be a bit deeper but I like the premise and keep wondering who’s next to appear. _Sheepfarmer’s Daughter (The Deed of Paksenarrion, Book 1)_ by Elizabeth Moon ~ I’m pretty sure this was a recommendation from this site. I liked it enough to want to continue with the series. _Kidnapped_ by Robert Louis Stevenson ~ Still keeping up with the classics! _Amber: Window to the Past_ by David A Grimaldi ~ A book about amber. (Really!) How it’s created, the different types, uses in history forgeries, etc. _Bridge of Birds: A Novel of an Ancient China That Never Was_ by Barry Hughart ~ I’ve seen this recommended here a few times and will throw in my support. I did not want to put this down! Presently reading: _Heartsblood: Hunting, Spirituality, and Wildness in America_ by David Petersen ~ I’m nibbling at this one and loving it. It gives me lots to ponder. _Adventures of a Mountain Man: The Narrative of Zenas Leonard_ _A History of Dogs in the Early Americas_ by Marion Schwartz _The Shadow of the Wind_ by Carlos Ruiz Zafón ---
**Author:** ![AuntiePam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2009, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-apr-09-edition/491443/8 "2009-03-31T19:04:57Z")
> [@jsgoddess](#): > > _Ship of Magic_, by Robin Hobb I absolutely adored the Liveships trilogy. What a great concept. I’m still reading _Sweetsmoke_ by David Fuller. Sweetsmoke is a tobacco plantation, and it’s 1862. The main character is Cassius, a slave who is trying to find out who killed his friend, a free black woman. It’s the best book I’ve read from the slave’s point of view. Lots of insight into the different relationships. Nobody is “evil” or “good”, but it’s not a whitewash either. The parts I’m enjoying most are Cassius reading _Julius Caesar_, trying to find out why his owner gave him the name Cassius, trying to figure out if Cassius is an honorable man, and what honor means. Next up is probably _A Mercy_ by Toni Morrison. ---
**Author:** ![yanceylebeef](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yanceylebeef/32/12290_2.png) [@yanceylebeef](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yanceylebeef)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2009, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-apr-09-edition/491443/9 "2009-03-31T19:11:30Z")
Sigh. I bailed on Drood. It never grabbed me, and I just couldn’t get in tune with either the narrator or Dickens as anything more than a poorly written character. I’ll let it sit for a while and give it another whack this fall. Currently re-reading the Science of the Discworld books, as well as Contagious by Scott Sigler. It’s a sequel to Infected that came out last year. About an alien invasion with viruses as opposed to spaceships. The first book was very faced paced and engrossing, I finished it in a couple of days. The new one hasn’t grabbed me with the same intensity, but I’m willing to give it a chance. I’m kind of in a rut with my bookreading. Nothing seems to be enjoyable, and I’m not really looking particularly forward to any new releases. Which brings me to a question… Where is the best place to see new and upcomming releases? I’ve tried to google it, but keep coming up with individual publishers pages. Is there a clearing house for this sort of news? amazon seems to beno real help. Thanks! Yancey ---
**Author:** ![AuntiePam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2009, 9:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-apr-09-edition/491443/10 "2009-03-31T21:05:48Z")
> [@yanceylebeef](#): > > Where is the best place to see new and upcomming releases? I’ve tried to google it, but keep coming up with individual publishers pages. Is there a clearing house for this sort of news? amazon seems to beno real help. Aha! Another opportunity for me to plug Bookmarks Magazine. It’s published bi-monthly and there’s good stuff at the website too – [bookmarksmagazine.com](http://bookmarksmagazine.com). They compile reviews from lots of sources. Very few ads, and they do at least 50 books in each issue. Fiction – literary, crime, and SF, and nonfiction – general, biography, history, and science. Good articles too. Another resource is the NY Times. I signed up for an e-mail that comes in every Friday with several book reviews. I agree. Amazon’s no help. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2009, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-apr-09-edition/491443/11 "2009-03-31T21:07:20Z")
I’m currently working my way through the complete works of St. Augustine. I should be done some time in the next day or two. ---
**Author:** ![filling\_pages](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/b9bd4f/32.png) [@filling\_pages](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/filling_pages)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2009, 9:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-apr-09-edition/491443/12 "2009-03-31T21:30:37Z")
As part of my year long and getting longer [attempt to read nothing but dystopian fiction](http://epicdystopia.blogspot.com/), I’m currently reading **The Fifth Sacred Thing** by Starhawk. Now, this is not the worst book I have read since starting this whole dystopian thing, but let me put it this way: my vegetarian, yoga-doing, flowing skirt wearing, sandlewood musk scented sister saw it on my coffee table, rolled her eyes, and said, “Gawd, that book is too hippie even for me.” ---
**Author:** ![Infovore](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/infovore/32/420_2.png) [@Infovore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Infovore)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2009, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-apr-09-edition/491443/13 "2009-03-31T21:49:32Z")
I just finished [The Graveyard Book](http://www.amazon.com/Graveyard-Book-Neil-Gaiman/dp/0060530928/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1238536127&sr=8-1), by Neil Gaiman. Enjoyed it a lot. Interesting premise, interesting characters. ---
**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:** [March 31, 2009, 10:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-apr-09-edition/491443/14 "2009-03-31T22:23:08Z")
> [@Gulo\_gulo](#): > > _The Painted Bird_ by Jerzy Kosinski ~ Ugh. I’m positive that I’ve actually read this before but must have blocked it from my memory. I made it through four chapters of that before the waves of nausea overwhelmed me. It was more disgusting than [Kathy Acker’s work](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kathy_Acker#Literary_biography) and I thought that was the pinnacle of nastiness. Clearly I have led a sheltered life. ---
**Author:** ![Eutychus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Eutychus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eutychus)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2009, 12:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-apr-09-edition/491443/15 "2009-04-01T12:49:26Z")
Just finished “The Yiddish Policeman’s Union” by Michael Chabon. Interesting read … and a lot to digest. I may go back to it again. Next up is … yes … “Pride and Prejudice and Zombies.” It’s an interesting concept, but I worry that it will turn out to be a one-joke book. I’m wondering if the author is going to be able to keep it interesting throughout the whole novel. If I give up on that it’s on to the biography of Mark Twain by Ron Powers. ---
**Author:** ![Sigmagirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c89c15/32.png) [@Sigmagirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sigmagirl)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2009, 1:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-apr-09-edition/491443/16 "2009-04-01T13:03:39Z")
Just starting \*Blue Smoke and Murder \*by Elizabeth Lowell. ---
**Author:** ![SaharaTea](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e9a140/32.png) [@SaharaTea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SaharaTea)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2009, 1:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-apr-09-edition/491443/17 "2009-04-01T13:03:55Z")
Just started _The Crimson Petal and the White_. I can only read over my lunch hour, so I should be done within the next decade or so. ---
**Author:** ![Sigmagirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c89c15/32.png) [@Sigmagirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sigmagirl)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2009, 1:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-apr-09-edition/491443/18 "2009-04-01T13:29:53Z")
There are parts you shouldn’t read out loud in the break room at work. Or let the boss read over your shoulder. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2009, 1:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-apr-09-edition/491443/19 "2009-04-01T13:53:10Z")
> [@SpazCat](#): > > …Tried reading Ian McEwan’s _Saturday_, bounced it back in the bookdrop after about 50 pages. It looked like one of those “stand around and pontificate about These Degenerate Modern Times” books and I got no patience for that… Most of my wife’s book club had the same reaction. I’m enjoying _The Pistol Poets_ by Victor Gischler, a comic crime novel about thugs, undergrads, drugs and bad amateur poetry at an Oklahoma cow college. I’d read Gischler’s _Gun Monkeys_ a few years ago and it was equally good. I’m also reading _The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen: The Black Dossier_ by Alan Moore and Kevin O’Neill. It’s not as good as the first volume of the series, but it has its moments. It’s fun to spot the literary allusions sprinkled throughout; more sex than the previous two books, too. I hope to get to Joseph Ellis’s history _American Creation_ and John Scalzi’s sf novel _The Last Colony_ this month, but I’ve been so busy I suspect I won’t. ---
**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:** [April 1, 2009, 2:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-apr-09-edition/491443/20 "2009-04-01T14:13:56Z")
I’m taking a break from my obsessive run through the Saint-Germain vampire books. Some nice historical fiction there, actually, and a wide variety of periods and places with which I’m largely unfamiliar. I’m reading the last of the No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency book, _The Good Husband of Zebra Drive_. So far it’s not a standout of the series. I need to read Honor Harrington # 10, _War of Honor_, but the reviews of it are discouraging. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-apr-09-edition/491443.md?page=2)