# Whatcha Readin' Dec 09 Edition **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [November 30, 2009, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-dec-09-edition/519487 "2009-11-30T17:02:59Z")\ **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:** [November 30, 2009, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-dec-09-edition/519487/1 "2009-11-30T17:02:59Z")
OK, the important stuff first: Tomorrow I turn 48 (send cards!) 🙂 I am reading Jim Butcher’s _First Lord’s Fury_ and really enjoying it. [Link](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=538145)to last month’s thread. ---
**Author:** ![yellowval](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/919ad9/32.png) [@yellowval](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yellowval)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2009, 5:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-dec-09-edition/519487/2 "2009-11-30T17:18:43Z")
Happy birthday! You are truly one of my favorite posters and I appreciate you starting this thread each month. I hope you have a wonderful day tomorrow. ---
**Author:** ![Lethal\_Babydoll](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/3be4f8/32.png) [@Lethal\_Babydoll](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lethal_Babydoll)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2009, 5:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-dec-09-edition/519487/3 "2009-11-30T17:36:33Z")
\*\*The Rescue Artist \*\*by Edward Dolnick, about the 1994 theft of Munch’s painting “The Scream” **Goat Song** by Frank Yerby, a novel about Ancient Greece \*\*Destroyer of Worlds \*\*by Larry Niven and some other dude, latest in a series about Puppeters and humans – this time with the Pak, for those of you who have read Niven’s “Protector” ---
**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:** [November 30, 2009, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-dec-09-edition/519487/4 "2009-11-30T18:21:25Z")
Just zipped through two comics: _Star Trek: Countdown_ by Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman is a pretty good prequel to the most recent _Star Trek_ movie. It shows how Spock and Nero first met and why the Romulan was out for revenge, laying the groundwork for the movie very well. Look for nice cameos by Picard, now the Federation’s ambassador to Vulcan; Data, captain of the _Enterprise_-E; LaForge, a retired engineer; and Worf, a general in the Klingon military. _The Forever War_ by Joe Haldeman and Marvano (no first name), an underwhelming 1988 comic adaptation of Haldeman’s military-sf classic. Just not all that good - using barely-altered Space Shuttles as the Earth forces’ assault craft was a particularly bad artistic choice, IMHO. Now reading _The Suicide Run_, a collection of William Styron’s Marine Corps-themed short stories. Kinda meh so far. ---
**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:** [November 30, 2009, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-dec-09-edition/519487/5 "2009-11-30T19:02:24Z")
I’m reading _Wellington: The Years of the Sword_, an old biography by Elizabeth Longford. It isn’t a great read so far (I’m just past the siege of Seringapatem) but I’m amusing myself by imagining Richard Sharpe in the background. For our season of holiday travel my husband and I have started the audio book of _The Mauritius Command_, book 4 of the Aubrey-Maturin series. I’ve read them twice through already, and the audio version (read by Patrick Tull) adds an interesting dimension. It’s nice to hear the nautical terminology and the occasional bits of “talking foreign” pronounced correctly. Although I think the humor doesn’t come across quite as well as it does in print. ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tim_r.mortiss/32/142_2.png) [@Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_R.Mortiss)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2009, 7:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-dec-09-edition/519487/6 "2009-11-30T19:05:24Z")
I’m still working on Atlas Shrugged, as I have been for about six months. I’m a slow reader. My lips get tired. Oh, and happy birthday, youngster!..TRM ---
**Author:** ![Future\_Londonite](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/9dc877/32.png) [@Future\_Londonite](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Future_Londonite)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2009, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-dec-09-edition/519487/7 "2009-11-30T19:50:56Z")
Just finished _Where the wild things are_ by **Dave Eggers**. Have now started on _Naked Lunch_ and then will face _Infinite Jest_ ---
**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:** [November 30, 2009, 8:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-dec-09-edition/519487/8 "2009-11-30T20:25:26Z")
I have Ian M. Banks Transition loaded in the Kindle, along with North of the DMZ, Essays about life in North Korea. and the Already Dead series by Charlie Huston is there, thanks to \*\*Eleanor of Aquitaine’s \*\* recommendation. I’m still working through the collected works of H.P. Lovecraft, but it’s turning into more or an assignment than reading for pleasure. A little Lovecraft goes a long way. Also just ordered The Financial Lives of Poets by Jess Walters. Not sure how it’ll be, but his Citizen Vince and The Zero were amazing books. I’'ve heard a rumour that Nick Harkaway’s follow-up to The Gone Away World is soon to be released, which has me more than a little excited! No confirmation on that though. ---
**Author:** ![RunSilent](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e0b2c6/32.png) [@RunSilent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RunSilent)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2009, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-dec-09-edition/519487/9 "2009-11-30T21:21:00Z")
I am almost finished with The Piano Tuner, by Daniel Mason. I recently finished Water for Elephants, by Sara Gruen, and, and, and, I recently finished War and Peace, hooray! ---
**Author:** ![C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b2d939/32.png) [@C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/C_K_Dexter_Haven)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2009, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-dec-09-edition/519487/10 "2009-11-30T21:40:26Z")
I’d never read _Don Quixote_, and we saw a great small-theatre production of “Man of La Mancha” so I’m actually reading D Q. ---
**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:** [November 30, 2009, 10:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-dec-09-edition/519487/11 "2009-11-30T22:14:09Z")
I just finished **Raven: The Untold Story of the Rev. Jim Jones and His People** , solely based on recommendations in previous threads. It was a fantastic read – thanks to everyone who thought to mention it here. I am almost finished with **The Other Hollywood: The Uncensored Oral History of the Porn Film Industry** by Legs McNeil and Jennifer Osbourne, and am planning to start Roberto Bolano’s **2666** after that. I’m a bit nervous because I couldn’t get through **The Savage Detectives** , but the plot of **2666** sounds a little more up my alley. ---
**Author:** ![Yodalicious](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yodalicious/32/8195_2.png) [@Yodalicious](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yodalicious)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2009, 10:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-dec-09-edition/519487/12 "2009-11-30T22:26:49Z")
Just started The Gunslinger. I’m hoping to read all 7 volumes of The Dark Tower back to back to back to back to back… ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tim_r.mortiss/32/142_2.png) [@Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_R.Mortiss)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2009, 10:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-dec-09-edition/519487/13 "2009-11-30T22:31:57Z")
> [@C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](#): > > I’d never read _Don Quixote_, and we saw a great small-theatre production of “Man of La Mancha” so I’m actually reading D Q. Good luck! I made it about half way through before giving up. Parts of it are very, very funny. But it gets mighty repetitive after awhile…TRM ---
**Author:** ![bup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6bbea6/32.png) [@bup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bup)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2009, 10:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-dec-09-edition/519487/14 "2009-11-30T22:32:12Z")
**Theodore Rex**. So far I’ve learned that American troops waterboarded people in the Philippines, and that was against policy, and they were court-martialed. ---
**Author:** ![yellowval](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/919ad9/32.png) [@yellowval](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yellowval)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2009, 10:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-dec-09-edition/519487/15 "2009-11-30T22:42:01Z")
I wasn’t getting into The Businessman and therefore wasn’t getting anywhere, so decided to ditch it. I have decided to tackle The Count of Monte Cristo in its place. I’ll let you know how I liked it in a year or so. Also still reading Mrs. Lincoln: A Life and listening to The Girl With No Shadow on audiobook. Mrs. Lincoln is kind of a disappointment. It’s mostly about Abraham, with a few, “Mary must have felt …” moments thrown in. ---
**Author:** ![Lethal\_Babydoll](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/3be4f8/32.png) [@Lethal\_Babydoll](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lethal_Babydoll)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2009, 12:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-dec-09-edition/519487/16 "2009-12-01T00:13:01Z")
> [@Daddypants](#): > > Just started The Gunslinger. I’m hoping to read all 7 volumes of The Dark Tower back to back to back to back to back… Good luck. They get progressively weaker and slower. ---
**Author:** ![AuntiePam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2009, 12:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-dec-09-edition/519487/17 "2009-12-01T00:14:01Z")
I’m reading [Top Dog](http://www.amazon.com/Top-Dog-Jerry-Jay-Carroll/dp/0441005136/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1259626105&sr=1-1) by Jerry Jay Carroll. Usually all my reading is done at bedtime, but I’m enjoying this one so much I brought it downstairs. It’s about a Wall Street trader who is magically transformed into a large dog, and wandering in a land where there’s a war going on between good and evil forces. It’s funny and dark and I’m really enjoying it. ---
**Author:** ![Lethal\_Babydoll](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/3be4f8/32.png) [@Lethal\_Babydoll](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lethal_Babydoll)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2009, 1:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-dec-09-edition/519487/18 "2009-12-01T01:11:50Z")
> [@yanceylebeef](#): > > I have Ian M. Banks Transition loaded in the Kindle Banks was my discovery of the year. hadn’t read any one his books until earlier this year and am making my way through them. me like a lot. he actually recognizes that humor is a normal part of human interaction. finished **Against a Dark Background** recently and am waiting on an inter-library transfer of **Use of Weapons** ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2009, 4:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-dec-09-edition/519487/19 "2009-12-01T04:24:48Z")
It’s still November and there are 18 posts… _The Proud Tower again,_ recommended in this months, er, last months thread. :rolleyes: Thanks, whoever you are. _Disaster on the Mississippi_ about the riverboat Sultana exploding near Memphis with the death of more people than the Titanic, mostly exchanged Union Civil War prisoners. Poul Anderson’s Conan novel, _Conan the Rebel._ Matt Helm, _The Terrorizers._ A novel about Terrorists in the 1970s and Matt Helm killing them. 🙂 ---
**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:** [December 1, 2009, 5:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-dec-09-edition/519487/20 "2009-12-01T05:58:54Z")
> [@bup](#): > > **Theodore Rex**. So far I’ve learned that American troops waterboarded people in the Philippines, and that was against policy, and they were court-martialed. There’s obviously much more to it than that; I love that book. Edmund Morris really _gets_ Theodore Roosevelt: his love of nature, his joy in life, his patriotism, his “muscular Christianity,” his love of his wife and family, his relishing of the Presidency, his playfulness, his intellectual curiosity, etc. Morris’s first book in the anticipated trilogy, _The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt_, is also well worth a read. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-dec-09-edition/519487.md?page=2)