Finished this month: Small Gods, Henry IV part I, American Gods, Pyramids.
Still working through: Crime & Punishment.
Just started: Lords & Ladies.
Rereading: Pride & Prejudice.
That’s one of my favorite books, monks in space! Fair warning: the ending is devastating, but in order to understand it you must read the followup book, Children of God. For some reason book groups like to read The Sparrow and then neglect to learn the whole story.
Recently finished:
Appetite for Life: The Biography of Julia Child by Noel Riley Fitch
The King Must Die by Mary Renault
Papillon by Henri Charriere (A reread. I love this book.)
Comanche Moon by Larry McMurtry
Here, There Be Dragons (Chronicles of the Imaginarium Geographica) by James A. Owen
Just started:
The Yiddish Policemen’s Union by Michael Chabon
Ongoing:
In the Company of Ogres by A. Lee Martinez
I was tempted to read this one since I live in the area (upwind!) but between your feedback and after reading the posts on Amazon, I’m going to take a pass.
wonderlust, thanks, I put Children of God on hold. I’m only about half way through The Sparrow, but I can already tell it’s going to be a favorite.
Finished Revolutionary Road, by Richard Yates, last night (Friday night). We’ll see the film today. It’s a great read, but I hope seeing the film immediately after reading the book doesn’t make me slit my wrists! Not an upbeat story.
Today I start The People Smell Like Flowers At Last: New Poems, by Charles Bukowski and edited by John Martin. Seems this is the fifth in a series of posthumous publishings of previously unpublished (I think) material by this house, Ecco, an imprint of Harper Collins. I’m a big Bukowski fan and am looking forward to it. Amazingly, there is one bookshop in Bangkok that maintains a large collection of Bukowski books, new ones, not used, but like books in general in Thailand, they are rather pricey. This book I obtained elsewhere, but it’s good to know there’s one place I can always count on to satisy my Bukowski jones. Too bad it’s so difficult to get to.
A Pale Blue Eye, or maybe it’s The Pale Blue Eye by Louis Bayard. Historical mystery, main character is a retired London constable investigating a murder at West Point. A cadet named Poe is helping him. Next up is Drood by Dan Simmons, so it’ll be a double dose of Poe!
I just finished Shooting the Boh by Tracy Johnston. It is the account of the first white-water expedition down the Boh River in Borneo. It’s of the Adventure Travel genre, but contains some interesting insights on aging, among other things.
Wouldn’t Drood be a dose of Dickens instead? Close enough! 
:smack: I’d just been reading about the book too, so lord knows why I was thinking Poe instead of Dickens.
I just finished re-reading Vance’s Dying Earth series and have started Esslemont’s Return of the Crimson Guard. I’m feeling a little lost regarding references to characters that I know I’ve seen before but don’t quite remember who they actually are, but I’m gonna try to see if I can work through it without first re-reading the past two or three books in the main Malazan series to get back up to speed.
Finished Old Man’s War today. I loved it. It’s been a while since I’ve read sci-fi that really grabbed me like that. Now to paw through the used bookstores to find the other two in the series.
I picked up The Satanic Verses from the library today. I’ve been meaning to read more Rushdie (the only book of his I’ve read is The Moor’s Last Sigh). After much hemming and hawing over whether to start at the beginning with Grimus (which is checked out until April) or start with whichever book I find first, I decided to go with the one that started a fatwa.
I’ve read and can heartily recommend the series. I have also read and recommend another Scalzi novel: The Android’s Dream (it is not part of the Old Man’s War series.) I’ll just say it’s fast paced and funny and has much to do with sheep.
I finished the Michael Palin Diaries book, and am currently reading Peter Sagal’s The Book of Vice: Very Naughty Things (and How to Do Them). (For those who listen to NPR, Peter Sagal is the host of the program “Wait Wait…Don’t Tell Me!”)
For this book Sagal researched and wrote about the following subjects:
- Swinging
- Eating
- Strip Clubs
- Lying
- Gambling
- Consumption
- Pornography
Sagal’s researches involved, for instance:
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For swinging, visiting with his wife and observing the activities at a swinger’s club that met at the apartment of the club’s founders, and talking with club members.
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For strip clubs, he went to various such spots in Las Vegas and talked to strippers and to customers of the clubs.
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For eating, he and his wife went to a very high-end restaurant for a molecular gastronomy dinner composed of many courses that cost them several hundred dollars, during which he observed and talked to the chef and the chef’s staff.
He offers serious thoughts about each of the subjects, but also provides plenty of humor in his observations of those who are involved in each of these subjects.
A very engaging and interesting book.
Just finished PR Frosts “Hounding the Moon” and will start “Moon in the Mirror” later tonight. (Urban Fantasy, relatively new author)
I’m not sure how I feel about the author or the premise. The storyline isn’t terribly original (secret society of female warriors fighting demons who may or may not be invading our world, the heroine annoys me, her invisible sidekick is a hoot, the supporting cast tends toward 2D, but the story is engaging, and flows well enough to keep me reading.
I’m in the mood for light escapism, and Hounding the Moon works well on that level, so I’ll read #2 in the series.
I’m taking a break between books 2 (The Neutronium Alchemist) and 3 (The Naked God) of Peter Hamilton’s Night’s Dawn trilogy (it’s very good, and was suggested by someone on the Dope.)
Taking advantage of the break to read:
A Time of War by Katherine Kerr (don’t know about it yet - picked it up to read on the airplane in an airport shop with limited selection.)
The Fire by Katherine Neville, which I’m only 10/15 pages into. Liked The Eight, so it should be good.
Just finished The Quest by Wilbur Smith.
I thoroughly enjoy his historical novels about Egypt.
Q
In the January thread, I mentioned I was reading “Space Man Blues” by Slattery and “Lamb” by Moore. I finished both books in February. I also read “In Defense of Food” by Pollan and will be starting “Homo Politicus” by Dana Milbank.
I must second your assessment. The Book of Vice was both an interesting and fun read.
I’ve had a terrible cold the last few days. This is the worst I’ve been sick in years, and I’m miserable and can’t settle on something to read. I’ve been staring at my list of 60 to-read books, which I have in the house already, and I can’t muster enthusiasm for a single one of them. I finally picked up a Georgette Heyer this morning (Faro’s Daughter) and it was perfect, but it only lasted me about three hours and I hate to pick up another one of those immediately because I’ll get the characters mixed up. If I don’t feel better tomorrow then I guess I’ll pick some old favorite and re-read it.
I have The Yiddish Policeman’s Union and Cloud Atlas at the top of my list, but those will require more concentration than I can summon right now. Maybe later in the week.
Feel better soon!