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What are you reading? (October 2010)
- Thread starter Maklershed
- Start date
I am reading Soul Survivor right now.
its pretty interesting if you believe in reincarnation or are curious about it.
Oh and I finished a book on Friedrich Nietzsche called Nietzsche (Beginner's Guide). It was pretty good but it kind of went over my head a bit lol. Some of the words were to big for me :lol
its pretty interesting if you believe in reincarnation or are curious about it.
Oh and I finished a book on Friedrich Nietzsche called Nietzsche (Beginner's Guide). It was pretty good but it kind of went over my head a bit lol. Some of the words were to big for me :lol
whatsinaname
Member
Quincey said:
After reading a few more chapters, I can say Inverting the Pyramid is pretty damn amazing. Even if the rest of the book is crap (which I am sure it's not), the read has been worth it. There is such a logical progression from the inception of football tactics (The 2-3-5 formation, the pyramid the book name references) towards current day formations. And the transitions are always explained in the context of the people who changed the game and times/political climate they were living in.
Great post-WWII Stalinist Russia crime thriller. I'm not very well read when it comes to Russian life around that period, but some of it is scary if true. Torture methods, being arrested for anything that could be "treason against the State," and so forth.
Great read thus far. Real page turner. If you liked Orwell, get this book.
whatsinaname
Member
Salazar said:
I am a Madrid fan, so there have been a few seasons where it felt like we still played a 2-3-5 formation post 2000. It was just 2 defenders and Casillas. :lol
Hmm, Those Feet does not seem to be at my local library. Will have to find a used copy somewhere. How is Brilliant Orange: The Neurotic Genius of Dutch Football?
whatsinaname
Member
Salazar said:
Cool. Two copies at my library. Just put a hold on one of them. Thanks for the recommendations.
Night_Trekker
Member
I finally got around to finishing All the Pretty Horses. It's excellent, of course. I'm moving on to The Crossing next.
I'm also recently started Kafka on the Shore, which I'm loving so far. I think I'll finish this one soon. I can't tear myself away from it.
And I recently finished The French Lieutenant's Woman for class. I love Fowles.
I really did not enjoy that book. In fact, I think I threw it across the room when I finished it. Which is really strange, since it's exactly the sort of thing I usually enjoy.
I did read it years ago. Maybe I would appreciate it more now.
I'm also recently started Kafka on the Shore, which I'm loving so far. I think I'll finish this one soon. I can't tear myself away from it.
And I recently finished The French Lieutenant's Woman for class. I love Fowles.
Foob said:
I really did not enjoy that book. In fact, I think I threw it across the room when I finished it. Which is really strange, since it's exactly the sort of thing I usually enjoy.
I did read it years ago. Maybe I would appreciate it more now.
I'm on the second book of the hunger games trilogy and I can't decide how I feel about it yet. One moment something really interesting happens than the next some stupid bullshit completely takes me out of the experience. But I keep reading for some reason. Katniss reminds me of Kate from lost. An unrealistic set of character traits wrapped in a confusing moral logic. And at times she's brilliant and cunning and others conveniently oblivious.
After reading the terror and under the dome which were both superb this book feels like a step down. Under the dome was strange and terrifying and very human. Don't know how else to put it.
After reading the terror and under the dome which were both superb this book feels like a step down. Under the dome was strange and terrifying and very human. Don't know how else to put it.
crowphoenix
Banned
Oh my goodness. Pride and Prejudice is so good. I cannot believe it has taken me this many years to read it. More the fool am I, eh?
Tim the Wiz
Banned
Fool? Agreed. It helps that Elizabeth Bennet is probably the most charming female character in - at least - English literature. (Yeah, I know I'm likely forgetting someone or someones, but I'd like to have my Kanye moment, please.)
crowphoenix said:Oh my goodness. Pride and Prejudice is so good. I cannot believe it has taken me this many years to read it. More the fool am I, eh?
Fool? Why? There's nothing wrong with keeping a few timeless classics in your backlog! P&P will always hold a special place in my heart; I gave it to my sister (who basically never reads) a few years back, and she's much more into books since then. Hurray for dislexic Jane Austen, writer extraordinaire.
mike23 said:
Finished this up finally. My grad classes are really cutting in to my reading time.
Reading this when it gets here on Monday
I think I've probably read most of the short stories, but I really want to read the new one. Plus, when I'm done I'll mail it to my dad who hasn't read any of the shorts.
Finally finished Follett's latest. Stunning. It's an absolutely fantastic work of historical fiction. It's a remarkable work that quite honestly is the best book I have read in an incredibly long time. Purely by coincidence I read Guns of August a month or so ago and it fed perfectly into this book. I suggest to anyone who wants to learn about World War I that these two books are the perfect place to start.
Every character is interesting and while meant to be an avatar for their nation or movement, they are never cardboard. The interactions and emotions are powerful. The writing isn't notable except that it never gets in the way. Follett is able to subtly change his writing to suit the situation and the circumstance so that the words themselves, not just their meaning, evoke particular images.
The only glaring weakness is Follett's preoccupation with sex. Unlike the hack fantasy authors I always chide for their virgin-esque descriptions of sex, Follett manages to treat to act itself with dignity, but in the first third of the book it's constant. As the book plays out it becomes clear this is with purpose but it can be a bit much at times, especially in the weeks following the assassination but before the outbreak of war.
My biggest problem now is how to follow it up. It's probably going to be years before Follett finished up the sequel...which is now my most anticipate work ever.
Ok just finished Tokyo Vice and I have to say, it's an incredible book. I was amazed how well Adelstein was able to combine the serious subject matter with alot of humor. He still managed to provide alot of food for thought especially with the very serious ending. A read I can't recommend enough.
BanShunsaku
Member
Just finished:
Just started:
Shadow's Edge was fantastic, I enjoyed it quite a bit more than the first book. Really loving this series, can't wait to see how it all ends.
Just started:
Shadow's Edge was fantastic, I enjoyed it quite a bit more than the first book. Really loving this series, can't wait to see how it all ends.
40 pages into Lolita and really enjoying it. I've seen the Kubrick film but this is naturally quite different. Amazing writing! I want to read Nabokov's Pale Fire and The Eye eventually.
The Long Ships is on hold until I finish Lolita, since I'm borrowing my copy from a friend. I'm looking forward to getting back into that as well, in due time.
The Long Ships is on hold until I finish Lolita, since I'm borrowing my copy from a friend. I'm looking forward to getting back into that as well, in due time.
Blackace
if you see me in a fight with a bear, don't help me fool, help the bear!
Stick to Drawing Comics Monkey Brains. Scott Adams
Really funny. Shades of Dave Barry
and
Way of The Kings by Brandon Sanderson
This is going to get back burnered for the next Wheel of Time book.. and when ever I read fantasy I feel like I should be working on my own book.. so I stop and start writing.. lol
Really funny. Shades of Dave Barry
and
Way of The Kings by Brandon Sanderson
This is going to get back burnered for the next Wheel of Time book.. and when ever I read fantasy I feel like I should be working on my own book.. so I stop and start writing.. lol
Blackace
if you see me in a fight with a bear, don't help me fool, help the bear!
Cyan said:
I have... but I really want to try to write an "epic" series of sorts.. so had to flesh out more than characters.. now I am in the meat of writing it and hoping to get the first book done by next year..
Micromegas
Member
Alucard said:
I think it's more the density than the difficulty. Any dense fiction like that really requires you slow down and adapt to the prose style.
Well, just finished this. Overall I'm quite disappointed because I had heard it was one of his better books but I really got nothing out of it like my experiences with A Scanner Darkly and Androids Dream, which stick with me to this day. I guess this is a cheesy 70's scifi film in book form, plot holes cloud my head and the pacing just doesn't keep you interested. Out of nowhere a conclusion is brought upon you with some explanation but no sense of it anywhere beforehand. And then the main characters shift and all the sappy sentimental crap that I love is portrayed through the crying policeman, basically the main antagonist, which I quite enjoyed reading even though I had no connection with this character until then.
Looking forward to see how they butcher the film adaptation at least.
Onto finishing the rest of VALIS and then I'm probably going to take a break from all this PKD. Although I'm really wanting to read The Man in the High Castle right about now regardless.
Tell me about some great sf please? I might just pick up that Game of Thrones book from the library, the HBO teaser got me interested. Might be a good break from scifi.
HarkenSlash
Member
I have to read it for school, but it's actually quite enjoyable.
HarkenSlash said:
I have to read it for school, but it's actually quite enjoyable.
The texts I probably put most time into were Arrian's Campaigns of Alexander, Tacitus' Agricola, Caesar's De Bello Gallico, and Plutarch's Lives. I didn't really get to Thucydides, which is a shame - not that I would have readily traded the time I spent with Plutarch. Too goddamned enjoyable.
ElectricBlue187
Member
ultron87 said:Re-reading Excession by Iain M. Banks.
Might pick up his new one, Surface Detail once I finish this. Or possibly get back to Old Man's War.
I can't find this version ANYWHERE. All I can find is the small format paperback which I've accidentally bought twice
Guileless
Temp Banned for Remedial Purposes
I finally got a Kindle. Just running out of room and shelf space and my special lady cringes whenever she sees new books. I like it a lot so far. After living in a small bookstore-less town I had gotten used to waiting a week or two for Amazon's free shipping, so getting a book in less than a minute is a nice change.
I am reading I am the Gloryhunter: One Man's Quest for the Ultimate Football Season. It's really funny so far. The premise: the author puts all the teams in the Football League in a hat, pulls one out, and pledges to move there and follow that team until...it loses. Then he pulls up stakes and starts following the winner, and so on and so on, for an entire season.
I am reading I am the Gloryhunter: One Man's Quest for the Ultimate Football Season. It's really funny so far. The premise: the author puts all the teams in the Football League in a hat, pulls one out, and pledges to move there and follow that team until...it loses. Then he pulls up stakes and starts following the winner, and so on and so on, for an entire season.
sparky2112
Member
About 150 pages in. I grabbed this because it was one of Time's (I think it was Time) '3 big books of the Fall'. Big it is. Check it:
Slightly over 1,000 pages (and McSweeney's printed in on thickish paper, so the book is HUGE), and for that alone it's being compared to Infinite Jest. It takes place over four days in the life of a 10-year-old who is convinced he's the Messiah. Think Owen Meaney with an attitude problem. So far it's really amusing - nowhere near the level of IJ's complexity, but there are hints of it, and the writing is very good - very readable.
Tip: if you want to pick this up, the cover price is $29, but Amazon has it for $15-ish.
HarryHengst
Member
It's really, really good yes. Do not expect Dostoyevsky, it's not thát good, but this really is pretty much the best the genre has to offer. Almost done with the second book and it's one big WOAH after the other. ALso, he's not afraid to kill main characters, which is awesome as you never know whether or not a character will survive a situation.Xater said:Ok I am giving this one another shot because everyone is so in love with it:
rubbishmonkey
Member
I'm about to begin John Ajvide Lindqvist's Harbour after enjoying Let The Right One In but finding Handling The Undead slightly hard going (although I did quite like it)