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[8bit]

Douglas Coupland - jPod, first book of his I've enjoyed in years. Very much a sequel to Microserfs.

 

[Brian Fellows]

Every time I hit a bookstore they dont have Feast in stock. Lam3. Thats ok tho, reading too many books right now as it is.

I'm a cheater. I listen to it on my Ipod. But I've seen it in several book stores. I guess people where you live just have better taste haha.

 

[teruterubozu]

Reading this. Great writer, pretty hilarious.

 

[whytemyke]

"Why I'm Not a Christian" by Bertrand Russell...

this should be required reading for anyone wanting an advanced education.

 

[Flynn]

I'm still polishing off Neal Stephenson's The System of the World. I think it's the best book of the series.

It really is. I'm glad I read that series.

 

[BigGreenMat]

I just finished 'A Confederacy of Dunces' by John Kennedy Toole. This manuscript was published 13 years after he committed suicide. It is an incredibly written book and a shame that the guy who wrote it committed suicide when so much talent was untapped.

 

[thomaser]

Last 5 books I read:

- The Elephant Vanishes by Haruki Murakami
Nice shortstory-collection with several gems, but I don't think they are as successful as his novels. Maybe I just don't get them.

- The Urth of the New Sun by Gene Wolfe
Satisfying end to the Book of the New Sun-series. Wolfe is my favourite sci-fi author bar none.

- South of the Border, West of the Sun by Murakami
Lovely little book. Laidback, cool and bittersweet about love. Made me want to listen to old jazz.

- Ulysses by James Joyce
Circe (the mad, hallucinatory chapter where everything is a metaphor) and Ithaca (the question-and-anwer chapter) were my favourite parts. Impressive book, but damn is it hard to follow at times. Didn't know much about Ireland or Dublin before, so I'm kicking myself for not reading Dubliners and Portrait first.

- After the Quake by Murakami
More shortstories by Murakami. Feel the same about it as about The Elephant Vanishes. There might be utter brilliance in there, but I can't seem to find it. Still very good, though.

Reading right now:

- The Gormenghast Trilogy by Mervyn Peake
- Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by J. K. Rowling
- The Master Key System by Charles F. Haanel

Next on the list:

- Sputnik Sweetheart by Murakami
- Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix by Rowling
- City of Saints and Madmen by Jeff VanderMeer

Just wondering: have anyone read books about dreams? I keep having all sorts of strange dreams all the time, and I remember them very well, so it would be fun to read about what they might symbolize. Is Freud's The Interpretation of Dreams manageable for someone who doesn't know much about psychology at all, or should I try something more contemporary?

 

[Futureman]

Last few books I've read include

-Tristessa and Dharma Bums by Kerouac
-One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest by Kesey

I'm reading "Demon Haunted World" by Sagan right now. Started it before all of those above, but I'm still working my way through.

 

[Barbacoatl]

Re-visited this recently.

and

Good times.

 

[Lo-Volt]

I just started:

Barry Werth's book on the early days of Gerald R. Ford's administration and the specter of Richard Nixon.

My more memorable read of the summer, though, was one I missed first time around:

Intermixing the dramatics of the 1977 Yankees (the sections involving Reggie Jackson are hilarious), 1977 politics (a.k.a. the rise of Ed Koch and the end of old-fashioned social democratic policies) and the death of postwar New York City amid blackouts, riots and financial oblivion. If the general subjects interest you, I strongly recommend this book.

 

[Jugendstil]

 

[Eric P]

It really is. I'm glad I read that series.

i liked confusion the best.

 

[Property of Jumpship]

Read Gravity's Rainbow, it's difficult but amazing.

Also, Foucault's Pendulum is good, it's Da Vinci Code for the intelligent.

I'll second Cryptonomicon by Stephenson as well. Those three books should keep you busy for awhile.

 

[Eric P]

Good times.

an excellent choice.

i love his prose work.

i wish that a new collection would come out gathering his post 9/11 speeches and the various articles he's done for the atlantic and the new yorker.

 

[dazedx]

Currently reading through that. Really easy read and its short !!

 

[Alur]

Reading it through for the second time. Who knows. I might get through it a third time before A Dance With Dragons is out.

I've read that "A Feast for Crows" sucked or tanked and it is somehow alot different from the first 3 in the series. Is it different POV's or what? If so, are ANY of the main POV's from the first three

Spoiler

(Tyrion, Jon, Daenerys, etc.)

in this book?

I'm currently halfway through reading "A Storm of Swords". Anyway, thank you GAF for recommending this series to me. I've also picked up the first two books of "Malazan Book of the Fallen" series.

 

[UltimaKilo]

Alright, I want to read that book "The World Is Flat", Heard good things about it. The Alchemist is another I want to read.

I have just finished reading John Grisham's The Broker which was great. However I am currently reading these:

But I suggest this series of books for EVERYONE who loves advetures:

This one is the 2nd of 5 in the Series

1st book

Only two are out in English thus far, with the third making debut in January. These books will be made into a major motion picture late fall in Spain. The main character is Viggo Mortensen. Here is a link to the trailer. WARNING: Slight spoiler if you want to read the books, well kinda.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vAcrIr84OdQ&search=Capitan Alatriste

 

[Duck of Death]

I've read that "A Feast for Crows" sucked or tanked and it is somehow alot different from the first 3 in the series. Is it different POV's or what? If so, are ANY of the main POV's from the first three

Spoiler

(Tyrion, Jon, Daenerys, etc.)

in this book?

No.

Spoiler

Arya has a few chapters, but that is all.

 

[sprsk]

Im reading the earthsea quartet but im kinda stuck on it cause the second book is kinda meh.


READ THE THREE KINGDOMS DAMN YOU!

 

[nitewulf]

currently reading through this again:

these are what i have to read, as in books i have bought in the past 2 years or so, but never got around to:

ulysses
portrait
hardboiled wonderland
good omes (almost finished)
cryptonomicon (will never finish probably)
bangkok tattoo (prequel is BRILLIANT)
batman: long halloween
persepolis
spin state
new york trilogy
short story coll. - f scott fitzerald
short story coll. - china mieville
short story coll. - ted chiang

...

when the f*ck am i gonna read all these???

oh, to be a jobless student. pennyless. but i had time. those days are over.

now i have the money, but not the time. what irony.

 

[keanerie]

Amazing, incredible, heart-breaking book. Beautiful stuff.

 

[Futureman]

Has anyone read "the Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay" or "Mysteries of Pittsburgh?" I work at a book store (and live in Pittsburgh) and these two have stood out to me. I think I'll pick them up soon.

 

[Lil' Dice]

Haven't started reading it yet, but i'm a huge fan of Thomas Friedman.

 

[jxanthony]

I am an English lit major so my recommendation will ultimately blow your mind:

Life of Johnson by James Boswell.

and if you're into foundations of Western culture (like Greek and Roman stuff), check out Plutarch's Lives (Parallel Lives) by Plutarch. It outlines the parallel nature of many famous Roman and Greek people.

Good stuff.

 

[John Harker]

http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=110699

Join me, please. Its uh... kinda lonely over there, haha

 

[Nostrildamus]

Currently reading:

&

Recently Finished:

 

[Groder Mullet]

and

 

[Brian Fellows]

I've read that "A Feast for Crows" sucked or tanked and it is somehow alot different from the first 3 in the series. Is it different POV's or what? If so, are ANY of the main POV's from the first three

Spoiler

(Tyrion, Jon, Daenerys, etc.)

in this book?

I'm currently halfway through reading "A Storm of Swords". Anyway, thank you GAF for recommending this series to me. I've also picked up the first two books of "Malazan Book of the Fallen" series.

Arya and Sansa are both POVs in AFFC. Other POVs returning include Sam and Jaime.


No real spoilers other than the names of the new POVS.......

Spoiler

You also get two new regular POVs in Cersei(I loved her chapters but some do not) and Brienne. The stuff in Dorne and the Iron Isles is where it gets kinda weird. In Dorne you get one shots from Arys Oakheart and one from Doran Martell's Captain of the guards then the rest is Arianne Martell. He could have easily left out the Captain of the guards and Oakheart and just made Arianne a regular POV and still gotten all the same info across. In the Iron Isles its pretty much the same. He could have left out Aeron and Asha Geyjoys couple of chapters and made Victarion a regular POV(since he gets the bulk of the chapters) to the same effect. But he didnt and those two regions are kinda all over the place.

With all that said yeah not nearly as much happens in AFFC as in ASOS. But if things were to keep up like they do in ASOS there would be nobody left in Westeros by the time book 6 gets here. AFFC just happens to take place during a lull in the war but plenty still happens IMO. If you enjoy Martins writing and his characters you should still enjoy AFFC. Just not as much as A Storm of Swords.

Jon, Tyrion, Bran, Davos, and Dany will all be in A Dance of Dragons.

 

[Boogie]

Just finishing up:

A great read. A history book that's fairly accessible to non-history buffs, and one that pretty much shatters the idea of determinism in history, imo.

Next it will be:

That is, actually reading the book and not just frantically skimming it for relevant material for a research essay.

 

[way more]

I'm only half-way through and I don't know if I could suggest it yet. If it doesn't pick up (ha) then I'll have to write it off as an interesting premise withen a bloated book.

This is my third attempt and I hope the disturbing truths it holds can stick longer in my mind. Last time I read it I could understand and explain it for maybe ten minutes before it was all too much to comprehend. But now I've got wikipedia so I can see exactly how J. J. Thompson discovered the electron.

 

[karasu]

I just finished going through Majestic(can't believe it's been canned!), and now I'm going through Y: The Last Man.

 

[Timbuktu]

Has anyone read "the Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay" or "Mysteries of Pittsburgh?" I work at a book store (and live in Pittsburgh) and these two have stood out to me. I think I'll pick them up soon.

Of Chabon's books, I've read Kavalier and Clay, and The Final Solution. I really liked Kavalier and Clay and despite its length I found it quite easy to read. The end might not be the most satisfying but I loved the way Chabon crafted the characters and the period around the 1940s. Given gaf's love for comics, I think many here would have read and loved this book.

 

[Eric P]

Recently Finished:

Is this any good?

I've been jonsing for it ever since the write up in Jones and Newmans 100 Great Horror

 

[Mr Furious]

Currently reading:

Gotta luv Virginia Woolf

 

[WrathOfOtaibah]

Just finished reading:

Think and Grow Rich - Napoleon Hill
Overcoming the Five Dysfunctions of a Team - Patrick Lencioni

Reading Right Now:

Into the Wild - Jon Krakauer

On Deck:

Under the Loving Care of the Fatherly Leader - Bradley Martin
Think and Grow Rich - Napoleon Hill (yes, I'm reading it again)

 

[KingGondo]

Last 5 books I read:

- After the Quake by Murakami
More shortstories by Murakami. Feel the same about it as about The Elephant Vanishes. There might be utter brilliance in there, but I can't seem to find it. Still very good, though.

Just wondering: have anyone read books about dreams? I keep having all sorts of strange dreams all the time, and I remember them very well, so it would be fun to read about what they might symbolize. Is Freud's The Interpretation of Dreams manageable for someone who doesn't know much about psychology at all, or should I try something more contemporary?

Just wanted to comment on after the quake... I find it to be one of his best works, especially "Super-Frog Saves Tokyo" and "Honey Pie." "Honey Pie" is so heartbreakingly beautiful, childlike, sentimental... sigh. "Super-Frog Saves Tokyo" is so Kafka-esque and tragically funny I still re-read it from time to time.

Since you're into Murakami and dreams, you should definitely read Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World, which deals with dreams extensively. I know you were looking for something that specifically concerns dreams, but I can't think of a better Murakami book that does this. Always nice to find others with similar taste in books.

 

[beelzebozo]

read it recently, and i am hard-pressed to say i've ever read a better book. funny, sad, insightful, and--most importantly--honest. it has the potential to change you, and that's the ultimate litmus test of a great book to me.

and this book just rulz.

 

[shantyman]

currently reading:

Me too.

Just finished:

And

 

[Phobophile]

Finished off this a couple weeks ago:

Started to read, but flashy video games and movies have distracted me:

 

[elektrotal]

just finished Foucault's Pendulum and Mouse or Rat? by Umberto Eco. The first is a fantastically written conspiracy novel that everyone who thought that Davinci code was great should read. The second is a ****ing awesome book about translation (eco is a linguist) and uses a lot of examples from Pendulum. If you can read italian, french, spanish, and english, you should definately give it a read.

Also, i just finished Virtual Light by Gibson. It was pretty good by his standards, really well developed world and pretty interesting story with a half assed ending (like every gibson book ever).

Two days ago i did a reread of Snow Crash by Stephenson, and it's still one of the best cyberpunk MMO style stories ever.

Just started reading Amulet of Samarkand, the first book in the bartimeus trilogy, because my jr high school students love it, so i figured i want to talk to them about it, and practice their english at the same time =) Turns out the book is a pretty fun read.

 

[Boogie]

Is this any good?

I've been jonsing for it ever since the write up in Jones and Newmans 100 Great Horror

It's a very entertaining read. The ending comes out of left field, but on the whole, I really liked it.

But it's not a horror novel.

 

[djtiesto]

just finished Foucault's Pendulum and Mouse or Rat? by Umberto Eco. The first is a fantastically written conspiracy novel that everyone who thought that Davinci code was great should read. The second is a ****ing awesome book about translation (eco is a linguist) and uses a lot of examples from Pendulum. If you can read italian, french, spanish, and english, you should definately give it a read.

Also, i just finished Virtual Light by Gibson. It was pretty good by his standards, really well developed world and pretty interesting story with a half assed ending (like every gibson book ever).

Two days ago i did a reread of Snow Crash by Stephenson, and it's still one of the best cyberpunk MMO style stories ever.

Just started reading Amulet of Samarkand, the first book in the bartimeus trilogy, because my jr high school students love it, so i figured i want to talk to them about it, and practice their english at the same time =) Turns out the book is a pretty fun read.

I am about to start Foucault's Pendulum as well... but I've heard that it is a very challenging read, is it really that bad? And its cool to see you like Snow Crash, probably one of my favorite books ever =]

 

[Jonnyboy117]

I'm reading Marcel Proust's Remembrance of Things Past.

 

[MrAngryFace]

If you like those period pieces this is a good book:

I just love the subject matter, and the main character is awesome.

 

[Jado]

I'm finishing up Gaiman's American Gods.

 

[Eric P]

It's a very entertaining read. The ending comes out of left field, but on the whole, I really liked it.

But it's not a horror novel.

their definition was quite broad.

i'll give it a shot.

thx

 

[Spainkiller]

I am about to start Foucault's Pendulum as well... but I've heard that it is a very challenging read, is it really that bad? And its cool to see you like Snow Crash, probably one of my favorite books ever =]

It's very tough at time, but worth the effort. It's an exciting book.

 

[Mifune]

It's very tough at time, but worth the effort. It's an exciting book.

How would you compare it to The Name of the Rose? More or less difficult? Loved that book.

 

[Spainkiller]

I'd say it was more difficult than Roses, and certainly not as straightforward a story. But reading it, you get the feeling that it was what Umberto was warming up for. The writing, even transalated, is so beautiful, and makes everything sound exotic. The book drips with mystery right until the very end. Not only this, but I've got so many little post-it notes in it, serving as bookmarks to favourite passages, that for me to go to that effort, is a sure sign that it's head and shoulders above your standard novel. It's actually quite hard to rate it as a story, as it's content is so dense. Cool to see some Eco fans on here btw.

As for me, I've just finished 'Falling out of cars' by Jeff Noon. Anybody here who's read it think that it's basically a description of somebody pulling a whitey?

 

[MrAngryFace]

Here's what the Fencing Master is about:

The year is 1866 and revolution is brewing in Spain. The corrupt Bourbon queen, Isabella II, is slowly losing her grip on power as equally corrupt exiled politicians vie to be her successor in a new republic. Against this background of political upheaval, Don Jaime goes about his business, teaching a dying art to a dwindling number of students. This is a man who resists changing times; to a friend he explains, "I have spent my whole life trying to preserve a certain idea of myself, and that is all. You have to cling to a set of values that do not depreciate with time. Everything else is the fashion of the moment, fleeting, mutable. In a word, nonsense." But then Adela de Otero--a woman with a mysterious past and an amazing talent for swordplay--comes into his life, and Don Jaime's world is turned upside down. As always, Pérez-Reverte offers literary excellence, a thumping good mystery, and fascinating insight into an arcane practice, in this case, fencing. Though the 19th-century politics in the book may resonate more with a Spanish audience than with English readers, the moral at the heart of The Fencing Master is universal: "to be honest, or at least honorable--anything, indeed, that has its roots in the word honor." In this, Don Jaime and Arturo Pérez-Reverte both succeed.