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What are you reading? (October 2011)
- Thread starter Maklershed
- Start date
Finished Revelation Space by Alaistair Reynolds earlier last month, loved it, but haven't had much time to read since.
I've been reading sooo much SF over the past year, so I'm switching gears a bit.
On my bedside table:
Del Amor Y Otros Demonios by Gabriel García Márquez
Forty pages in, and I really like it. I don't think I'd have ever thought of reading this, my girlfriend gave it to me for my birthday, but I'm really enjoying it. It's hard to describe, but the mood is very ethereal, dreamy. I must be missing out on a lot (not a native Spanish speaker, so a lot of vocab is going over my head), but I've liked what I have understood.
Next up:
Demons by Dostoyevsky
I have a good friend of mine who is spending the year studying in Saint Petersburg. I haven't really read any Russian literature, so I asked her for recommendations. Reading it in French because the translation is supposedly good and I haven't read anything in French in a looong time.
Faust by Goethe
Same friend is always talking about this book (I think she named her dog Faust?), and since I haven't read much German literature either, thought I'd give this a try. Reading it in French for the same reasons as above.
Going back to some Reynolds after those three (Revelation Space is the first I've read and there are four more waiting on my bookshelf), and after that I have Dance With Dragons and a ton of Murakami to read.
---
edit:
Concerning Murakami: I've only read Norwegian Wood so far (right before Revelation Space actually), and I loved it, so I second that recommendation. I LOVED it. I don't know why, the whole thing just clicked for me. I read it in August and I haven't stopped thinking about it since. Wondering in what order I should read his other works now though.. I was thinking After the Quake?
I've been reading sooo much SF over the past year, so I'm switching gears a bit.
On my bedside table:
Del Amor Y Otros Demonios by Gabriel García Márquez
Forty pages in, and I really like it. I don't think I'd have ever thought of reading this, my girlfriend gave it to me for my birthday, but I'm really enjoying it. It's hard to describe, but the mood is very ethereal, dreamy. I must be missing out on a lot (not a native Spanish speaker, so a lot of vocab is going over my head), but I've liked what I have understood.
Next up:
Demons by Dostoyevsky
I have a good friend of mine who is spending the year studying in Saint Petersburg. I haven't really read any Russian literature, so I asked her for recommendations. Reading it in French because the translation is supposedly good and I haven't read anything in French in a looong time.
Faust by Goethe
Same friend is always talking about this book (I think she named her dog Faust?), and since I haven't read much German literature either, thought I'd give this a try. Reading it in French for the same reasons as above.
Going back to some Reynolds after those three (Revelation Space is the first I've read and there are four more waiting on my bookshelf), and after that I have Dance With Dragons and a ton of Murakami to read.
---
edit:
Concerning Murakami: I've only read Norwegian Wood so far (right before Revelation Space actually), and I loved it, so I second that recommendation. I LOVED it. I don't know why, the whole thing just clicked for me. I read it in August and I haven't stopped thinking about it since. Wondering in what order I should read his other works now though.. I was thinking After the Quake?
Halycon said:For those of you who haven't been keeping track:
Available for order on Amazon or if you're part of the Kindle master race you can begin reading now!
Nice. Read all the previous books (even Maurice ...). Looking forward to.
I'm half through the second Hyperion (Simmons) Book. Things going crazy now. Next in line are all the R.R. Martin "A Song of Ice and Fire" books.
MagniHarvald said:
Faust by Goethe
Same friend is always talking about this book (I think she named her dog Faust?), and since I haven't read much German literature either, thought I'd give this a try. Reading it in French for the same reasons as above.
I loved Faust, though unfortunately I couldn't (and still can't) read it in German.
I grabbed The Caves of Steel today. I told a friend that I had never read anything by Asimov, and he was very disappointed in me. Needless to say I have to rectify this.
Don't worry Mumei, my German is limited to "Gutentag", "Ich bin ein Berliner", some Nazi stuff, and "kurrywurst bitteschön" (or however it's pronounced).
I loved the first two, mildly enjoyed the second two. They're not bad, but they're just not as good as the first two are. You've probably heard this before.
Oh, and you're in for a wild ride with the ASOIAF books
Donos said:
I loved the first two, mildly enjoyed the second two. They're not bad, but they're just not as good as the first two are. You've probably heard this before.
Oh, and you're in for a wild ride with the ASOIAF books
Maklershed
Member
Since I'm already reading Devil in the White City I figured I'd go whole hog (sorry) with the Chicago theme and also started The Jungle
The Jungle by Upton Sinclair
The Jungle by Upton Sinclair
ChiTownBuffalo
Either I made up lies about the Boston Bomber or I fell for someone else's crap. Either way, I have absolutely no credibility and you should never pay any attention to anything I say, no matter what the context. Perm me if I claim to be an insider
Ready Player One - Ernest Cline
Nerdiest geekiest love letter sci fi book I've read in some time.
Nerdiest geekiest love letter sci fi book I've read in some time.
DesertEater
Member
I'm intrigued, what is so good about these books?Lo-Volt said:I actually am, but I chose those two first because I had seen the miniseries adaptations of both. The Honourable Schoolboy is certainly on my list. And it's true, these Le Carre novel covers are quite good. A few others got the same treatment, like:
But never worry, you can always buy:
HiroProtagonist
Member
:\ Oh no.Halycon said:For those of you who haven't been keeping track:
Available for order on Amazon or if you're part of the Kindle master race you can begin reading now!
Magician by Raymond E. Feist
I hope it gets better because so far it is boring and predictable. boooooooooring.
DesertEater said:
I love the half-dozen or so of Le Carre's novels that I've read, but I'm not sure how best I can pitch them to you. His writing style conveys a lot of detail that beautifully describes the contemporary settings his novels take place in, combining a sense of melancholy about the Cold War (and the post-Cold War world) with enough humor to keep things from being too gloomy. His characters are compelling and complex, with their emotions in conflict with the secret lives they lead. I like to think that Le Carre's spy stories are probably very realistic, depicting tradecraft accurately and giving just as much emphasis to the bureaucratic wrangling behind the scenes as he does any action out in the field. What it boils down to is that Le Carre just writes damn fine novels.
If you're sold, I'd suggest starting with Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy.
FnordChan
D
Deleted member 1235
Unconfirmed Member
I'm reading shadow of the wind, not really feeling it
Snowman Prophet of Doom
Member
Propaganda aside (propaganda that I mostly agree with, mind), The Jungle is a pretty darn good book in its own right, with some really effective dramatic moments.
choodi
Banned
Feist is fun fantasy.HiroProtagonist said::\ Oh no.
Magician by Raymond E. Feist
I hope it gets better because so far it is boring and predictable. boooooooooring.
Don't go in expecting some sort of A Song of Ice and Fire experience and you'll enjoy it for what it is.
It has its moments
Aquavelvaman
Banned
I finished Shadows and Wind tonight. It was a bit tedious to read. It's not textbook-dry but it's close. If I wasn't interested in the subject it would have been a difficult read. That said, I found it to be a well-written and thorough look at modern Vietnam (at least through ~1998) which is all I was really looking for.
edit: I guess I didn't update when I finished Medium Raw:
Medium Raw was good overall. The chapters are disconnected and often scrounged from previous writing but I found them all interesting. If it weren't for some of the direct references to Kitchen Confidential I wouldn't say it is appropriate to call this book a follow up to it but it works. There are a few bits that are lifted directly from narration in No Reservations, although expanded, which would bother me except they were some of my favorite parts anyway.
I finished both of my October books way too early, so I'll pick two more:
That's right: more Vietnam, more Bourdain (hopefully some of both in Cook's Tour). Might as well ride it into the ground until I get sick of it.
edit: I guess I didn't update when I finished Medium Raw:
Medium Raw was good overall. The chapters are disconnected and often scrounged from previous writing but I found them all interesting. If it weren't for some of the direct references to Kitchen Confidential I wouldn't say it is appropriate to call this book a follow up to it but it works. There are a few bits that are lifted directly from narration in No Reservations, although expanded, which would bother me except they were some of my favorite parts anyway.
I finished both of my October books way too early, so I'll pick two more:
That's right: more Vietnam, more Bourdain (hopefully some of both in Cook's Tour). Might as well ride it into the ground until I get sick of it.
This is what I am reading now as well.Halycon said:For those of you who haven't been keeping track:
Available for order on Amazon or if you're part of the Kindle master race you can begin reading now!
Unfortunately the Kindle version (that I bought) is crap. It looks as if they picked the printed copy and ran it through OCR without any proof reading. -A lot- of missing spaces between the words and other formatting issues to the point of being really a distraction. Table of contents is missing as well. Kindle version was so bad that at least for now it is not offered anymore.
As for the story itself, I don't know... so far I am afraid this is nowhere as good as other Vimes stories (which I prefer to DEATH, Wizards, and Witches series). That magic touch about subtle humor is gone and replaced by somewhat crude and jokes with predictable punch lines.
Terry's last couples of books have been big disappointments for me. Well, except Nation.
Edit: Before starting "Snuff", I read Golden Compass trilogy... for the 5th time.
Finished up World War Z. It was great, really loved the style.
Next, going to start up Discworld and read them in published order as was recommended. If I like the series, I will probably just stick a new one in every once in a while as I catch up on my backlog.
After that, it's time for some non-fiction.
Next, going to start up Discworld and read them in published order as was recommended. If I like the series, I will probably just stick a new one in every once in a while as I catch up on my backlog.
After that, it's time for some non-fiction.
DesertEater
Member
Thats exactly what I hoped it would be. I'm definitely sold. ThanksFnordChan said:
I recently tore through the Kate Daniels series by the husband/wife team writing as Ilona Andrews. These are great urban fantasy novels with god awful covers. Here's an example:
Let's see, you've got a badass woman with a glowing sword and Aslan, all of whom have been run through Photoshop more than a few times. I realize the cover is pretty rough, even by SF and fantasy standards, and I had to have more than one friend recommend the books to me before I really believed them. Once I got started, however, I read all five novels in the series - Magic Bites, Magic Burns, Magic Strikes, Magic Bleeds, and Magic Slays - one after the other, basically as quickly as I could. I'm a sucker for good serial fiction and this has all the necessary qualities - fun characters, fast paced action, and plenty of hooks to leave you wanting more each time - plus an interesting urban fantasy setting. Our heroine is a wizard detective (naturally) working in post-magic apocalypse Atlanta, where magic returned to the world a few decades ago and all hell broke loose. Since then reality shifts between magical and technological tendencies, society has settled down and started adapting to the transitions (though large swaths of the urban landscape are basically ruins), and a very interesting take on vampires, a reasonably interesting take on werewolves, and a whole pantheon of trouble has returned to the world. Over the course of the series our tough-as-nails loner heroine (again, not what you would call a big surprise) makes friends, contemplates potential lovers, chops stuff up with her sword, gets involved with all sorts of political factions, and generally saves the day. It's not the most original series you're ever going to read, but the world building is pretty interesting and the authors have brought in some interesting mythology to drive each of the novels. They're all highly recommended for anyone looking for a stack of urban fantasy to wallow in, lousy covers and all.
For something completely different, I followed up the series with A Rage in Harlem, the first of Chester Himes' Grave Digger and Coffin Ed novels. I first discovered the characters in the excellent 1970 proto-blaxploitation film Cotton Comes to Harlem, based on a later novel in the series, and decided to start reading their adventures from the beginning. Published in 1957, A Rage in Harlem is about an exceptionally gullible mark, the con men who take him in, and how all hell breaks loose from there. Himes takes us through every corner where Harlem lowlife engage in gambling, prostitution, drug abuse, scams of all sorts, casual mayhem, and more, all with a very black sense of humor as the events of the novel become increasingly absurd. Grave Digger and Coffin Ed aren't the main characters this time around, but the book does a great job of introducing them as two-fisted (and, more importantly, two-pistoled) detectives who bust heads and have a lax view of the letter of the law when it comes to keeping Harlem's lowlife in check. I enjoyed the hell out of the book, which is completely top notch crime fiction, and I've got the next two novels in the series en route.
Finally, I just started reading Jo Walton's Among Others. I've barely begun the novel, but my understanding is that it's a coming of age story about a young woman shipped off to a boarding school where she does not remotely fit in, how she discovers science fiction and fantasy fandom, and how all of this has more than a bit of magic thrown into the mix. There's a short bit near the beginning that describes the book as an autobiographical fantasy novel, which is certainly a bit different, but I'm game. I picked up Among Others based on a rave by Walton's editor, Patrick Nielsen Hayden, who generally resists the urge to pimp books he's worked on unless he thinks they're completely amazing. I'm all of twenty pages in and can't really comment yet, but I'm very optimistic.
FnordChan
Let's see, you've got a badass woman with a glowing sword and Aslan, all of whom have been run through Photoshop more than a few times. I realize the cover is pretty rough, even by SF and fantasy standards, and I had to have more than one friend recommend the books to me before I really believed them. Once I got started, however, I read all five novels in the series - Magic Bites, Magic Burns, Magic Strikes, Magic Bleeds, and Magic Slays - one after the other, basically as quickly as I could. I'm a sucker for good serial fiction and this has all the necessary qualities - fun characters, fast paced action, and plenty of hooks to leave you wanting more each time - plus an interesting urban fantasy setting. Our heroine is a wizard detective (naturally) working in post-magic apocalypse Atlanta, where magic returned to the world a few decades ago and all hell broke loose. Since then reality shifts between magical and technological tendencies, society has settled down and started adapting to the transitions (though large swaths of the urban landscape are basically ruins), and a very interesting take on vampires, a reasonably interesting take on werewolves, and a whole pantheon of trouble has returned to the world. Over the course of the series our tough-as-nails loner heroine (again, not what you would call a big surprise) makes friends, contemplates potential lovers, chops stuff up with her sword, gets involved with all sorts of political factions, and generally saves the day. It's not the most original series you're ever going to read, but the world building is pretty interesting and the authors have brought in some interesting mythology to drive each of the novels. They're all highly recommended for anyone looking for a stack of urban fantasy to wallow in, lousy covers and all.
For something completely different, I followed up the series with A Rage in Harlem, the first of Chester Himes' Grave Digger and Coffin Ed novels. I first discovered the characters in the excellent 1970 proto-blaxploitation film Cotton Comes to Harlem, based on a later novel in the series, and decided to start reading their adventures from the beginning. Published in 1957, A Rage in Harlem is about an exceptionally gullible mark, the con men who take him in, and how all hell breaks loose from there. Himes takes us through every corner where Harlem lowlife engage in gambling, prostitution, drug abuse, scams of all sorts, casual mayhem, and more, all with a very black sense of humor as the events of the novel become increasingly absurd. Grave Digger and Coffin Ed aren't the main characters this time around, but the book does a great job of introducing them as two-fisted (and, more importantly, two-pistoled) detectives who bust heads and have a lax view of the letter of the law when it comes to keeping Harlem's lowlife in check. I enjoyed the hell out of the book, which is completely top notch crime fiction, and I've got the next two novels in the series en route.
Finally, I just started reading Jo Walton's Among Others. I've barely begun the novel, but my understanding is that it's a coming of age story about a young woman shipped off to a boarding school where she does not remotely fit in, how she discovers science fiction and fantasy fandom, and how all of this has more than a bit of magic thrown into the mix. There's a short bit near the beginning that describes the book as an autobiographical fantasy novel, which is certainly a bit different, but I'm game. I picked up Among Others based on a rave by Walton's editor, Patrick Nielsen Hayden, who generally resists the urge to pimp books he's worked on unless he thinks they're completely amazing. I'm all of twenty pages in and can't really comment yet, but I'm very optimistic.
FnordChan
Mgoblue201
Won't stop picking the right nation
One of the book's many charms is its remarkable portrait of 19th century Nantucket, though some people may find the extensive descriptions of cetology and whaling a little wearying. I enjoyed those sections but thought that the book could've benefited from some much needed editing.dubc35 said:
FnordChan said:
Funny, I'm going away for the weekend and just about grabbed Among Others off my bookshelf to take with me. I'm sort of saving it for a rainy day.
Instead, I'm bringing:
Planesrunner by Ian McDonald.
I've never read anything by McDonald. I've always had the impression that his writing's just too dense, takes too much effort and that I wouldn't enjoy it for those reasons, but I'm very curious about his first YA offering.
I always find books by athletes that try to present the reality of their sport interesting, and this was considered a shocking book when it came out in 1970, written by a former NFL linebacker who quit the game early. Meggyesy really gets into the seedier side of college and pro football (corruption, drug abuse, racism, etc). It's a very quick read.
InVinoVeritas
Member
This book is insane... I tried describing it to a friend and the best I could come up with was Lovecraftian horror slapstick, but that doesn't really do it justice.
FlyingTeacup
Member
Square Triangle
Member
Got two new books from Amazon.
I finished The Caves of Steel and then read The Left Hand of Darkness yesterday. The Left Hand of Darkness was pretty great, especially with the little reports and myths and stories interspersed with the 'main' story. I'm looking forward to reading The Dispossessed sometime, since I've heard that it is better.
I'm about to leave to go to a cousin's wedding, and I'll be taking The Naked Sun with me. I didn't really think The Caves of Steel was amazing when I first finished reading it - though I did enjoy it - but for whatever reason it seems to be staying with me and I want to read another.
I'm about to leave to go to a cousin's wedding, and I'll be taking The Naked Sun with me. I didn't really think The Caves of Steel was amazing when I first finished reading it - though I did enjoy it - but for whatever reason it seems to be staying with me and I want to read another.
Alpha-Bromega
Member
Canticle for Leibowitz
damn good reading, damned good
damn good reading, damned good
