# Whatcha Readin' Dec 2010 Edition **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [November 30, 2010, 9:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-dec-2010-edition/562466 "2010-11-30T21:36:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Keith\_Berry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/22d042/32.png) [@Keith\_Berry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Keith_Berry)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2010, 3:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-dec-2010-edition/562466/61 "2010-12-20T15:49:32Z")
My friend lent me _The Walking Dead_ issues 1-48 (in one volume) and I devoured it in one long session. I’m also reading _Handling The Undead_ by John Ajvide Lindqvist, author of the excellent _Let The Right One In_. ---
**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 20, 2010, 4:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-dec-2010-edition/562466/62 "2010-12-20T16:32:17Z")
> [@Eleanor\_of\_Aquitaine](#): > > …I got out my O. Henry story collection the other day and read “The Gift of the Magi” to the kids. (Also “The Ransom of Red Chief”, while we had the book out.) I like to reread Conan Doyle’s 1892 “The Blue Carbuncle,” set at Christmas time. A good Holmes & Watson mystery for the season. ---
**Author:** ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2010, 1:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-dec-2010-edition/562466/63 "2010-12-21T13:18:46Z")
Just finished _Cry Mercy_ an urban fantasy given to me for my Birthday. Most urban fantasies have a touch of fantasy and a touch of soap opera - but this one was heavy on the Soap and light on the fantasy. Mercy Hollings is a hypnotherapist who has two psychic abilities. 1. She can hear the thoughts of others. 2. She can “press” people and make them do as she asks. (If you read Fire Starter by King, it is the ability that the dad gets when he takes the government drug.) Her secretary can also hear people’s thoughts and is going to become a PI. Her other friends are two wealthy real estate agents, a head of a gang who is trying to get out and an former navy seal who is forbidden to tell her what he did. Much drama with trying to get out of the gang, find the key to Mercy’s past and other dramatic sub plots. I appreciated the fact that I got a birthday gift more than I did the actual book and won’t read the other Mercy Holling’s books - although who knows, if I had gotten the first one in the series first, maybe I would have been hooked. ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2010, 2:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-dec-2010-edition/562466/64 "2010-12-21T14:01:36Z")
My current book is Running the Books : the adventures of an accidental prison librarian by Avi Steinberg. Seems a fine book, but at my current reading rate of approximately ten minutes a week, I may never finish. It’s already overdue and the rest of the TBR pile will be soon. I hate it when this happens. :mad: ---
**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:** [December 22, 2010, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-dec-2010-edition/562466/65 "2010-12-22T16:13:09Z")
If you’re bored at work today, you could check out Connie Willis’s latest Christmas story, the 2008 Hugo Award winner for Best Novella, called “All Seated on the Ground”. It’s available free online on Asimov’s website here: [http://www.asimovs.com/\_issue\_0805/allseated.shtml](http://www.asimovs.com/_issue_0805/allseated.shtml). It’s a quick, amusing read, with Willis’s trademark comedic setup: a budding romance between two quietly competent individuals surrounded by chaos. Don’t get too worked up over the mystery of why the aliens won’t communicate - this isn’t profound science fiction. ---
**Author:** ![Sigmagirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c89c15/32.png) [@Sigmagirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sigmagirl)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2010, 4:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-dec-2010-edition/562466/66 "2010-12-22T16:18:52Z")
Finished Sara Paretsky’s _Body Work_, a V.I. Warshawsky novel; now reading Jeffrey Deaver’s _The Burning Wire_, a Lincoln Rhyme mystery. ---
**Author:** ![AuntiePam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2010, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-dec-2010-edition/562466/67 "2010-12-23T20:51:34Z")
Finished _The Salterton Trilogy_ by Robertson Davies. The first book was a light-hearted look at a community theater production. The second book was a bit darker and revolved around a malicious joke. The third book got really dark – there was even sex! How often do you find sex in a Davies book? Started _The Two Deaths of Senora Puccini_ by Stephen Dobyns. He’s not Latin American, but the book feels like it. That works for me, because I have problems with Latin American authors and this book might be a first/baby step toward “getting” the Latin American authors. ---
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2010, 11:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-dec-2010-edition/562466/68 "2010-12-23T23:57:05Z")
Been reading, just haven’t been posting. [ul] [li]_The Great Typo Hunt_ by Deck and Herson (Whatcha Readin’ recommendation) – liked it, didn’t love it. A guy and a series of his friends travel around the country correcting typos on signs. Since I’ve been in publishing for umpty ump years, it was not necessarily eye-opening about their ubiquity, and I’ve read enough on language that what it had about prescriptivism vs. descriptivism, etc., was also not new to me. [/li][li]_Reality Bites Back_ by Jennifer Pozner – feminist critique of reality TV. Good, but kind of repetitive, I ended up skimming parts. I don’t think it’s a secret that I’m a reality TV fan, and I’ll definitely have this in mind as I watch some of these shows in the future. [/li][li]_The Lady Tree_ by Christie Dickason (another Whatcha Readin’ recommendation) – adventure story that takes place in the milieu of the insanity of the Dutch tulipmania of the 1600s. Definitely enjoyed it.[/li][/ul] Just started _Pandora’s Seed: The Unforeseen Cost of Civilization_ by Spencer Wells – about the implications of agriculture for human history. I’m only about 40 pages into it but enjoying it so far. ---
**Author:** ![Ian\_D.Bergkamp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/5f8ce5/32.png) [@Ian\_D.Bergkamp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ian_D.Bergkamp)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2010, 1:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-dec-2010-edition/562466/69 "2010-12-24T01:39:33Z")
> [@Eleanor\_of\_Aquitaine](#): > > I’ve just finished Christopher Brookmyre’s novel _Be My Enemy, or Fuck This for a Game of Soldiers_. It was crazy and hilarious, as usual. Brookmyre is a brilliant writer. This is his fourth novel with the same protagonist, set in modern-day Scotland, but I think all of the books would stand well on their own. The only Brookmyre I’ve read so far is his first, _Quite Ugly One Morning_. It was excellent, though I think Brookmyre’s strengths were more in dialogue and characterization as opposed to plotting. Good to hear the others are equally good–I’ll be sure to put them on The List. As for me, I just finished Todd Balf’s _Darkest Jungle_, a non-fiction book about a failed American expedition to discover an Atlantic-to-Pacific canal route in Central America’s Darien Peninsula. It was good, but I came away thinking the entire expedition was poorly conceived, poorly planned, and poorly executed, so it was hard to feel any sympathy for the book’s main character, the expedition leader (even though his story is certainly tragic). Moving on to the 6th and last Charlie Chan book, _The Keeper of the Keys_. ---
**Author:** ![DSeid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dseid/32/20194_2.png) [@DSeid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSeid)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2010, 1:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-dec-2010-edition/562466/70 "2010-12-24T01:59:12Z")
Recently finished _Let the Great World Spin_ and before that _The Hunger Games_, both recommended to me by one of my sisters. Before that was _The Eden Express_ by Mark Vonnegut - found while engaged in the never ending process of clearing out my deceased mother’s house. Was expecting more from _The Hunger Games_. _Let the Great World Spin_ was better but more for a good sense of discovering characters. The coincidental intersects of the separate stories just came off contrived. Still a good read. _The Eden Express_ was a good quick read - autobiographical of his (yes Kurt’s son) psychotic illness. I am now starting _The Magic Mountain_ (also from my sister’s list) and am still getting used to the style. _Foucault’s Pendulum_ is up next and I am looking forward to it enough that I have to decide if I want to wait to finish _The Magic Mountain_ first. One of my kids has _Boneshaker_ on a shelf and I may give that a read after these. ---
**Author:** ![Emily\_Litella](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/emily_litella/32/3370_2.png) [@Emily\_Litella](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Emily_Litella)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2010, 3:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-dec-2010-edition/562466/71 "2010-12-24T03:04:49Z")
I just finished _The Heaven Tree Trilogy_ by Edith Pargeter, one of her pen names is Ellis Peters, writer of the Brother Cadfael mysteries. There’s The Heaven Tree, The Green Branch and The Scarlet Seed, I have them collected in one volume. I see people in this thread mentioning Sharon Penman and stories about the Welsh Marches in the 13th century (I read Penmans’ books when they were first published), you’d probably enjoy these books too. This trilogy is set in the same place and time, it’s about a fictional Marcher lord returning from the Crusades who wants to build a cathedral with the riches he brought back from the holy land. He befriends a young Norman mason and a Venetion courtesan on his way back to England. King John, his daughter Joan, Llewellyn the Great and William De Braose are figures in the books. I really like the way she develops her characters. There are some battle scenes but they seem to be there mostly to advance the story. ---
**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 24, 2010, 3:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-dec-2010-edition/562466/72 "2010-12-24T03:37:47Z")
> [@Khadaji](#): > > Just finished _Cry Mercy_ an urban fantasy given to me for my Birthday. > > Mercy Hollings …can “press” people and make them do as she asks. (If you read Fire Starter by King, it is the ability that the dad gets when he takes the government drug.)… My favorite mind-control story is _Tool of the Trade_ by Joe Haldeman. A great Cold War sf/espionage yarn about a Soviet sleeper agent who develops a reliable method of mind control, and decides to put it to good use for the betterment of mankind (or does he?) before the CIA or KGB nab him. Great stuff. ---
**Author:** ![Alice\_The\_Goon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ed8c4c/32.png) [@Alice\_The\_Goon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alice_The_Goon)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2010, 5:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-dec-2010-edition/562466/73 "2010-12-24T05:57:32Z")
I was trying to slog through _Guns, Germs, and Steel_, but oh god is it boring! My eyes glaze over and I have to keep reading pages over again because I’ve drifted away mentally. Now trying to supplement it with\* A Plague of Doves\*, by Louise Erdrich, which is, so far, only slightly more entertaining. ---
**Author:** ![Ian\_D.Bergkamp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/5f8ce5/32.png) [@Ian\_D.Bergkamp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ian_D.Bergkamp)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2010, 2:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-dec-2010-edition/562466/74 "2010-12-24T14:07:09Z")
> [@DSeid](#): > > _Foucault’s Pendulum_ is up next and I am looking forward to it enough that I have to decide if I want to wait to finish _The Magic Mountain_ first. I envy anyone who is reading _Foucault’s Pendulum_ for the first time. It’s a favorite of mine that I re-read regularly. My paperback was falling apart, so my wife gave me a first-edition hardcover for Christmas last year. She’s a very thoughtful person. 🙂 If you like it, I suggest you try [Lempriere’s Dictionary](http://www.amazon.com/Lemprieres-Dictionary-Lawrence-Norfolk/dp/0802139876/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1293199561&sr=8-1) by Lawrence Norfolk. Very different setting and plot, but extremely similar in style. ---
**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:** [December 25, 2010, 3:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-dec-2010-edition/562466/75 "2010-12-25T03:44:13Z")
I liked _Foucault’s Pendulum_, but: It seemed to lose steam and peter out toward the end. The journey was definitely better than the destination. ---
**Author:** ![TheMerchandise](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b487fb/32.png) [@TheMerchandise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheMerchandise)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2010, 12:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-dec-2010-edition/562466/76 "2010-12-25T12:25:45Z")
I’ve finished Last Argument of Kings. The ending was bittersweet, with a serious emphasis on the “bitter.” Still, excellent fantasy series and one I highly recommend. Also finished Prince of Tides, which blew me away. I keep gushing about it to people who’ve never read the book and I’m sure I’m annoying. Will be checking out the rest of Pat Conroy’s works. I’m moving apartments in a few days, so all my books are packed away. Since the library’s closed until Tuesday, I may have to resort to reading the back of cereal boxes and window cleaner bottles. ---
**Author:** ![Ian\_D.Bergkamp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/5f8ce5/32.png) [@Ian\_D.Bergkamp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ian_D.Bergkamp)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2010, 4:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-dec-2010-edition/562466/77 "2010-12-25T16:12:16Z")
> [@Siam\_Sam](#): > > I liked _Foucault’s Pendulum_, but: > > It seemed to lose steam and peter out toward the end. The journey was definitely better than the destination. Fair enough, but I think that was (at least part of) the point: The entire plot was akin to a snake chasing its tail. There never was a grand conspiracy, there was only the fever dream of a conspiracy fed by the desire for one. The brilliance of the ending, for me, is that, after spending most of the book caught up in the whirlwind, Eco allows us to step off at the end to see what a circular, self-contained system it really was. ---
**Author:** ![DSeid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dseid/32/20194_2.png) [@DSeid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSeid)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2010, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-dec-2010-edition/562466/78 "2010-12-25T18:15:33Z")
You know not opening these spoilers is killing me. Especially since I’m not even close to finishing _The Magic Mountain_ yet. ---
**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 25, 2010, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-dec-2010-edition/562466/79 "2010-12-25T18:43:43Z")
> [@TheMerchandise](#): > > …Also finished Prince of Tides, which blew me away. I keep gushing about it to people who’ve never read the book and I’m sure I’m annoying. Will be checking out the rest of Pat Conroy’s works… Good for you! May I recommend _The Lords of Discipline_, about the integration of a Southern military academy, or _The Great Santini_, about a larger-than-life Marine fighter pilot and his family, or _My Losing Season_, nonfiction about Conroy’s last year as a college basketball player. Similar themes, and all very readable. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2010, 6:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-dec-2010-edition/562466/80 "2010-12-25T18:47:31Z")
Finished Bryson’s “At Home”, which was entertaining and informational. Now reading “The Plague of Doves”. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-dec-2010-edition/562466.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-dec-2010-edition/562466.md?page=5)