# Whatcha Readin' Sept 2012 Edition **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [August 31, 2012, 1:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-sept-2012-edition/633257 "2012-08-31T13:56:36Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![beagledave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6de8d8/32.png) [@beagledave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beagledave)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2012, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-sept-2012-edition/633257/61 "2012-09-10T19:30:29Z")
> [@delphica](#): > > I finished _The Good Father_, by Noah Hawley, I picked it up because it had been mentioned in one of these previous threads, by, I think, **Elendil’s Heir**. It sucked me in right away, it’s the story of a father trying to piece together the events and circumstances that led up to his young adult son, previously a harmless loner, deciding to assassinate a presidential candidate. It has now also made me completely neurotic about every parenting decision I make. > > I also read the first of John Sandford’s Lucas Davenport mysteries, _Rules of Prey_. I’m very mixed about this, it was a fairly standard police-hunting-a-serial-killer novel, and pretty engrossing on that front, but MAN, I know it was written in 1989, but the detective’s extremely juvenile and annoying relationships with women nearly put me over the edge (it’s that terrible thing where you realize the author thinks he’s portraying a desirable guy who likes women _wink wink_, but it’s all just “omg eww.”) It’s enough that I’m debating whether to read more for the crime plots, or avoid for the cringe factor. > > Currently reading _Gone Girl_, and I’m liking it a lot. I’ve read all of the Prey stuff, his relationships with women become more realistic and professional (although sometimes complicated) over time. ---
**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:** [September 10, 2012, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-sept-2012-edition/633257/62 "2012-09-10T19:56:57Z")
> [@delphica](#): > > I finished _The Good Father_, by Noah Hawley, I picked it up because it had been mentioned in one of these previous threads, by, I think, **Elendil’s Heir**. It sucked me in right away… Yes, I’d mentioned it. One of the few books I’ve ever read that was kinda meh to start, but got better and better and better, all the way to a very powerful conclusion. ---
**Author:** ![AuntiePam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2012, 9:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-sept-2012-edition/633257/63 "2012-09-10T21:18:10Z")
_Among Others_ by Jo Walton. Won a Hugo and a Nebula and is apparently out of print in hardcover. I didn’t care for her dragon book, _Tooth and Claw_, but am enjoying this one. ---
**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:** [September 10, 2012, 10:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-sept-2012-edition/633257/64 "2012-09-10T22:05:50Z")
Well, Subteranean had a sale, so now I’m knee deep into Cryptic, collected short stories of Jack McDevitt. The Dog Stars is up next. ---
**Author:** ![LawMonkey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d6d6ee/32.png) [@LawMonkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LawMonkey)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2012, 12:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-sept-2012-edition/633257/65 "2012-09-11T00:01:23Z")
Finished up 11/22/63 over the weekend. Hell of a good read. Starting in on The Price of the Stars now, which I found through Amazon recommendations. Hopefully it’ll be decent. ---
**Author:** ![Invisible\_Chimp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/f05b48/32.png) [@Invisible\_Chimp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Invisible_Chimp)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2012, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-sept-2012-edition/633257/66 "2012-09-11T20:54:33Z")
Finished _Slowness_ by Milan Kundera and _Memories of my Melancholy Whores_ by Gabriel García Márquez. I’m finishing _Republic, Lost_ by Lawrence Lessig and _1Q84_. ---
**Author:** ![Bilbo1967](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7bcc69/32.png) [@Bilbo1967](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bilbo1967)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2012, 9:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-sept-2012-edition/633257/67 "2012-09-11T21:57:52Z")
Just about to finish The Long Earth by Terry Pratchett and Stephen Baxter. It’s very different to your average Terry Pratchett book, but I enjoyed it all the same. I’ve never read anything by Stephen Baxter before, so I couldn’t comment if it’s similar to his other works. ---
**Author:** ![yellowval](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/919ad9/32.png) [@yellowval](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yellowval)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2012, 12:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-sept-2012-edition/633257/68 "2012-09-12T12:35:02Z")
I finished Into Thin Air last night. Wow. It was amazing. I’m only sorry I hadn’t read it sooner. Now I’ve started Frederick Feikema Manfred’s Scarlet Plume. It’s set in my neck of the woods during the U.S./Dakota War of 1862. I decided I needed to read this one because of the timeliness (150th anniversary of the U.S./Dakota War) and because I recently wrote an article about Manfred (this year marked the 100th anniversary of his birth) and realized I need to read more of his work. Until now I’d only read Lord Grizzly. I love reading local/Minnesota authors so I don’t know why I haven’t read more Manfred. I guess I’ve been too infatuated with Sinclair Lewis. For my bedtime read (Scarlet Plume isn’t available as an ebook and I find it easier to read on my Nook in bed), I started All Roads Lead to Austen: A Yearlong Journey With Jane. The Nook version was free on B&N last Friday. I couldn’t wait so it got bumped immediately to the front of the line. ---
**Author:** ![Politzania](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3ab097/32.png) [@Politzania](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Politzania)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2012, 3:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-sept-2012-edition/633257/69 "2012-09-12T15:04:31Z")
Just finished a re-read of Jackie Morse Kessler’s _**[Hunger](http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7247856-hunger)**_ as prep for the second in her Riders of the Apocalypse series, _[Rage](http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7670661.Rage)_ While the concept is nothing new - humans becoming a power/concept/force of nature incarnate (see Piers Anthony’s _Incarnations of Immortality_, Death in Terry Pratchett’s Discworld series, and, for that matter - the 4 Horsemen in Pratchett & Gaiman’s _Good Omens_) I think Morse Kessler’s twist on the idea is intriguing. An anorexic girl is tapped to become the incarnation of Famine… she learns from the experience and turns her life around. Not nearly as Afternoon Special as it sounds from the description, tho. The protagonist is well-written, and the situation is covered both empathically and realistically. In the afterword, the author explains her connection to the topic. Worth a library read - recommended especially to the target audience of teenage/tween girls who may be dealing with body image issues. I’ll be checking out the next books in the series. * * * Can’t remember if I saw this here or over at the GB- but thanks to [Books on the Knob](http://blog.booksontheknob.org/2012/09/free-classics-from-audible.html#links) - I discovered that a bunch of PD classics were available for free via Audible if you “bought” the Kindle version as well. So I snagged [their version of _ **Dracula** _](http://www.audible.com/pd/ref=sr_1_1?asin=B0078PA1OA&qid=1347451821&sr=1-1) and am finding it much easier going than the print version. Am up to the letters between Mina and Lucy - the plot is unfolding slowly, but the narrators (several well-known voice actors/narrators) are helping to keeping my interest. May set this aside for a bit & save it till closer til Halloween! ---
**Author:** ![Shakester](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shakester/32/437_2.png) [@Shakester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shakester)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2012, 3:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-sept-2012-edition/633257/70 "2012-09-12T15:14:44Z")
[Double Cross](http://www.amazon.com/Double-Cross-Story-D-Day-Spies/dp/0307888754/ref=la_B001H6WAL8_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1347462628&sr=1-1) The True Story of the D-Day Spies by **Ben Macintyre**. I’ve read (and loved) his previous WW2/spy histories, _Agent Zigzag_ and _Operation Mincemeat_. This one looks to be just as good. ---
**Author:** ![Lust4Life](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ecc23a/32.png) [@Lust4Life](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lust4Life)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2012, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-sept-2012-edition/633257/71 "2012-09-12T19:03:11Z")
The Long Earth, a Terry Pratchett novel. ---
**Author:** ![Mauvaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mauvaise/32/11084_2.png) [@Mauvaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mauvaise)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2012, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-sept-2012-edition/633257/72 "2012-09-12T20:07:14Z")
I spent August reading Harlan Coben’s Myron Bolitar series so I’m kind of still in a mystery/thriller kind of mood. So I’m finally getting around to reading Tana French’s **In The Woods**. I’ve only just started (maybe 50 pages in). It’s a little slow getting started, but I know several people that enjoyed it, so I’m sticking with it. ---
**Author:** ![rocking\_chair](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rocking_chair/32/2918_2.png) [@rocking\_chair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rocking_chair)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2012, 10:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-sept-2012-edition/633257/73 "2012-09-12T22:33:56Z")
> [@Siam\_Sam](#): > > That sounds interesting, as I happen to know not only is that the height of the 30 Years’ War, but the German states bore the brunt of the damage. it really is a good series. just imagine what a person from 163? will think of cheerleaders! there is a huge community around these books and mr flint is very generous with his creation. ---
**Author:** ![rocking\_chair](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rocking_chair/32/2918_2.png) [@rocking\_chair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rocking_chair)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2012, 10:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-sept-2012-edition/633257/74 "2012-09-12T22:42:09Z")
after zipping through the hunger games trio, i’ve gotten into “end of the states as we know them” books. amsterdam 2012 and h10n1 were very interesting. amsterdam 2012 had islamic extremists and a flu outbreak. h10n1 had a flu outbreak that was set off as bio warfare by north korea. ---
**Author:** ![Docta\_G](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/2bfe46/32.png) [@Docta\_G](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Docta_G)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2012, 10:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-sept-2012-edition/633257/75 "2012-09-12T22:44:32Z")
The writing on the wall. ---
**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:** [September 13, 2012, 3:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-sept-2012-edition/633257/76 "2012-09-13T03:06:57Z")
> [@Docta\_G](#): > > The writing on the wall. You’re locked in a toilet stall? 😕 ---
**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:** [September 13, 2012, 3:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-sept-2012-edition/633257/77 "2012-09-13T03:12:18Z")
> [@yellowval](#): > > …Now I’ve started Frederick Feikema Manfred’s Scarlet Plume. It’s set in my neck of the woods during the U.S./Dakota War of 1862… This NYT article might interest you: [http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/14/us/14dakota.html?\_r=1&pagewanted=all](http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/14/us/14dakota.html?_r=1&pagewanted=all) ---
**Author:** ![Cartooniverse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cartooniverse/32/3084_2.png) [@Cartooniverse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cartooniverse)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2012, 2:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-sept-2012-edition/633257/78 "2012-09-13T14:09:34Z")
> [@Docta\_G](#): > > The writing on the wall. You are viewing a Kodachrome ? ---
**Author:** ![EvilMinion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/35a633/32.png) [@EvilMinion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EvilMinion)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2012, 2:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-sept-2012-edition/633257/79 "2012-09-13T14:21:40Z")
I read The Long Earth recently and really enjoyed it. Now I’m reading Redshirts, by John Scalzi, and I love it. ---
**Author:** ![yellowval](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/919ad9/32.png) [@yellowval](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yellowval)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2012, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-sept-2012-edition/633257/80 "2012-09-13T16:33:42Z")
> [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](#): > > This NYT article might interest you: [http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/14/us/14dakota.html?\_r=1&pagewanted=all](http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/14/us/14dakota.html?_r=1&pagewanted=all) Very interesting! Thank you! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-sept-2012-edition/633257.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatcha-readin-sept-2012-edition/633257.md?page=5)