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[Akima]

It was his sled?

[Loki]

He was the princess all along!

[94ssd]

Rocinante is a traitor.

Currently reading See Rock City, a story collection by Donald Davis.

[Is it cold in here?]

I just finished Cicero's "de Officiis" and am most of the way through Salman Rushdie's memoir.

[explicit]

I picked up Let's Explore Diabetes with Owls by David Sedaris at the airport. It looked interesting, and was clearly a national bestseller if it was in the little airport bookstore (and I guess it does say national bestseller on the title page... huh look at that). It's in short story format and is a quick read. I like the humor and the occasional amount of absurdity. Literally bought it on a whim and had no idea what it was about, so I'm pleasantly surprised.

[lepetitfromage]

He's delightful I've read all of his books and saw him at the Bardavon last Fall. He signed my book and drew an owl with a screwdriver in its head. Also, I feel it relevant to share that he was wearing culottes. <3


If you haven't yet, read Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim. Or Me Talk Pretty One Day.
(Or...well, anything else, really. I love them all.)




I plan on starting Beautiful You by Chuck Palahniuk this afternoon. I'm excited but apprehensive! I'm a huge fan of his as well and this book has had some seriously mixed reviews. I have high hopes but we'll see where it goes.

[BeoPuppy]

I picked up Let's Explore Diabetes with Owls by David Sedaris at the airport. It looked interesting, and was clearly a national bestseller if it was in the little airport bookstore (and I guess it does say national bestseller on the title page... huh look at that). It's in short story format and is a quick read. I like the humor and the occasional amount of absurdity. Literally bought it on a whim and had no idea what it was about, so I'm pleasantly surprised.

I picked that up based solely on the title. Okay read. I figured out later that the author is a semi-regular on This American Life whom I enjoy. The more you know.

Currently reading: Worst. Person. Ever.

[Grognard]

I am reading a biography about Dietrich Bonhoeffer:

"Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy."

very interesting and in depth about the fight for Germany's soul prior to & during WW2.

[GarandMarine]

I picked up Let's Explore Diabetes with Owls by David Sedaris at the airport. It looked interesting, and was clearly a national bestseller if it was in the little airport bookstore (and I guess it does say national bestseller on the title page... huh look at that). It's in short story format and is a quick read. I like the humor and the occasional amount of absurdity. Literally bought it on a whim and had no idea what it was about, so I'm pleasantly surprised.

I picked that up based solely on the title. Okay read. I figured out later that the author is a semi-regular on This American Life whom I enjoy. The more you know.

Currently reading: Worst. Person. Ever.

Mein Kampf? Or did you get Margaret Thatcher's biography?

[BeoPuppy]

Funny. But ... no: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Worst._Person._Ever.

Douglas Coupland. His books are cocaine to me. (Though this wasn't his best.)

Currently reading ... The fault in our stars. I feel so ... YA.

[Gladstone]

Fell into some sort of weird mood that made me lose interest in everything I'm currently reading (no matter how enjoyable), so I set aside Don Quixote for a bit and started The Magic Mountain by Thomas Mann.  Is there a word (in German, probably) for that feeling you get when you want to read something, but just not the book(s) you're reading at the moment or even any of the books you currently own/have borrowed from the library?  Because I get that feeling every few months, and it completely ruins me for a day or two until I can find the exact book to get me out of it. 

On the plus side, that's how I ended up reading Moby-Dick a few years ago, and TMM is going rather well, so I can't complain too much...but it's still annoying when it starts.

[Is it cold in here?]

"Founder's Son", a Lincoln biography.

[BeoPuppy]

Finished TFIOS, finished Looking for Alaska, currently reading an Abundance of Katherines.

Yes, I have a box set.

... finished 'katherines' and paper towns.Just one more and then I can go and do something else.

[ankhtahr]

I'm ill, can't really leave bed, and spend the time finally reading Dune.

[Kugai]

The Spice must flow.

[hedgie]

Bless the Maker and his water.

[ankhtahr]

Whoa. I now realise how often I've read that sentence, now that I understand the reference… 

[Kugai]

MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM

Shaihuluuuud

[Orkboy]

Finished the first three Game of Thrones books, and I refuse to read farther because I want to be surprised by the show. 

[DavidGrohl]

The shows have made it past book 2.  I think there are a few events left towards the end of the third book that have yet to take place.

[BeoPuppy]

Kul Wahad.

Also: finished all the John Green books I have. A+, would recommend. Currently reading Stikvallei, a dutch book about a valley in Kameroen where 1200 people died, over night, in their sleep.

[Orkboy]

The shows have made it past book 2.  I think there are a few events left towards the end of the third book that have yet to take place.

Yeah, like the book three epilogue.  Don't worry, no spoilers, but having read it now, I'm a little surprised they didn't choose that for the season closer, unless they plan to ignore it entirely.  It's a hell of a dramatic moment.  I don't know how book 4 wraps up, but if it ends on an insufficiently dramatic moment, they could dust off the book 3 epilogue and use that, and watch people's heads explode.  George RR Martin seems to have a knack for ending a book on a dramatic high point, though. 

[LeeC]

Read "Fist of Demetrius" the sequel to "Angels of Fire" in the Marcharius Crusade trilogy.  Was interesting the way the narrative would switch from Leo (the protagonist from book 1) and the villain.  Was also interesting having Xenos as a story teller and the villain. I quite liked it and thought it was a nice romp in the 40k verse but I thought the ending was pretty lack luster to what it was leading up to.  Then again a lucky throw of a grenade, though mundane, makes it more realistic in a story stepped with evil space elves.  Will need to pick up the final installment at some point.

In the meantime I'm delving into non-fiction with "King Leopold's Ghost".  its about western imperialism in the Congo.  I'm 2 chapters in and its been very eye opening.  The West's romanticized ideal of the "Dark Continent" ignited by Henry Morton Stanley was interesting and King Leopold's lack luster early life and terrible marriage have been remarkable.  Finding out that Queen Victoria and Prince Albert had to explain sex to Leopold and his bride is really hysterical.

[The Seldom Killer]

I cracked through two books while on holiday;

Mime Order by Samantha Shannon - This is the sequel to Bone Season and is showing a maturation of the author and development of storytelling ability. The first book was a decent enough little read but I found this one far more engaging. It seems likely that there will be further growth and improvement. It's also good to see a sci-fi/fantasy genre'd book playing about with psychic powers as a principle device. It's an area I haven't bumped into that often but it does manage to avoid the more obvious cliche's.

Station Eleven by Emily St John Mandel - A really good take on the post-apocalyptic scenario. I was a bit sceptical about this book as the usual fare on this genre tends to follow quite a set pattern. I'm glad I picked it up though as it deviates from that very early on and strikes a good balance between the inevitable bleakness and that human capacity for adaptation and hope.

Currently reading Before I Go to Sleep by S J Watson. There already seems to be a film of this so I'll probably watch that later. It's a good take on the amnesia/Memento scenario where the amnesiac character slowly uncovers her past and present situations. Immense plaudits have to be given to the author/editor/publishers for setting the scene before reading that the central character can't trust the person who's looking after her. However, with two principle carers, you don't know which is the unreliable narrator about what. You're immediately thrust into questioning details and chewing over inconsistencies as they're revealed to the central character. About half way through you'll be guessing as to what is going on but you'll either be pleased with yourself to have guessed right or pleased with the storytelling if you guessed wrong.

[Kugai]

Well, picked up Red Mars by Kim Robinson from the Library today.


Haven't read it in years, and even then I don't think I got more than half way through it due to various reasons.  Meant to go back and get it again to read, but never got round to it, but since it appears that there is a Big Screen version of it in the works, I thought I'd read it and it's sequels right through this time.

[Dalillama]

Just finished The Daedalus Incident and the sequel The Enceladus Crisis.  Parallel universe fun, where one is a century odd in our future, with various nations exploring the Solar System, and the other in an alternate 18th century where alchemy allows sailing ships to travel the Void.

[Kugai]

Ever read A Transatlantic Tunnel, Hurrah! by Harry Harrison?

Great Alt History novel set in a world of 1973 where Washington lost the Revolution and the Americas are still a British Colony.

[Dalillama]

Yup.  Have you seen his The Hammer and the Cross trilogy?  A group of Norse pagan priests set out to compete with Christianity in an organized fashion, and forge a new kingdom with the aid of a renegade Englishmen.  Vikings, warfare, technological development, and vikings abound.

[jwhouk]

Becoming Big League. Book by a U of Washington professor about the Seattle Pilots, and the whole morass surrounding their one season as an American League team.

[Kugai]

Yup.  Have you seen his The Hammer and the Cross trilogy?  A group of Norse pagan priests set out to compete with Christianity in an organized fashion, and forge a new kingdom with the aid of a renegade Englishmen.  Vikings, warfare, technological development, and vikings abound.

Haven't read that one.  Have read his Stars and Stripes Trilogy though.

[LTK]

I weeded through the boxes of old books in my parents' attic and found a few Charles Dickens hardbacks. I took Oliver Twist home to read, as well as The Origin of Species. But those haven't captured my interest as much as Harry Potter and the Methods of Rationality, the fanfic, which has received a slew of new chapters and is nearing its end. You can get a reasonable idea of where it's going with the first chapter, and it's boundlessly entertaining.

[Schmee]

HPMOR is an excellent read, but the first 5 or so chapters have a different feel to the rest. It starts off with "ha ha the magical world makes no sense look at all these inconsistencies", but afterwards it slows down a little and starts actually building a story.

[LTK]

The whole "magical Britain is insane" business seems to be referenced regularly throughout the story, but yes, it wastes no effort in supporting that notion at the beginning of the story. There's plenty of comedic notes throughout as well, which I really enjoy. And also plenty of times where it breaks your fucking heart and stomps it into the ground.

Just look at the last chapter, it was posted tonight. I can hardly read the text with how goddamn grimdark this has gotten.

(click to show/hide)

And then there's the threat of the story not resolving at all if people can't find a way out of this. That's cruelty the likes of which can only be wrought on online fanfics.

[Grognard]

Reading "The Book of Barkley" by L.B. Johnson

Amazon Link

Johnson is a poetic wordsmith with a flowing cadence all her own.
  If there ever was a book PERFECT to be an audio book, this is it.

[hazlett]

I'm starting to read Great Expectation by Charles Dickens

[Pilchard123]

Are you looking forward to it? Do you have great expe-*trapdoor*

[LeeC]

Just finished King Leopold's Ghost.  It is about the life of King Leopold II of Belgium and how in his constitutional monarchy he was able to set up his own fiefdom in the Congo and sap as much profit as possible for himself. It was totally his personal colony and not of the Belgian people's until about a year before his death.  Trying to gather as much money as possible his colonial offices really enslaved the native and treated them harshly just to increase his profits.  The horrible things I've read and how one of the earliest modern humanitarian movements to stop this occurred.  It is a very well written book and the author almost likens it to a novel of short stories.  You learn about the "heroes" of the time and how they were venerated when they were far from heroic, as well as those demonized for speaking out about the treatment of the Congolese.  If you ever want to read about the period or learn the darker side of the imperialism of Africa I highly suggest picking this up.  It is amazing how Leopold used webs of media and propaganda to placate not only the Belgian populace but also the government of foreign powers like France, Germany, UK, and USA!  More amazing on how a bunch of nobodies was able to speak up and defend the Congolese and try to get Leopold's grip wrestled from the Congo.

[94ssd]

A Child of Christian Blood, about the trial of Mendel Beilis. He was a Jew living in Czarist Russia who was arrested in Russia and charged with blood libel (for those who don't know: the accusation that Jews kidnapped and murdered Christian children), and his trial brought international attention to Russia's extreme antisemitic policies.

[ev4n]

Anyone have a recommendation for a Buddhism primer?  Need some light reading while I'm on vacation next week.

[Aziraphale]

Anyone have a recommendation for a Buddhism primer?  Need some light reading while I'm on vacation next week.

Practice, sutras, or overview?

My personal favorite is Thich Nhat Hanh's The Miracle of Mindfulness, and a lot of the rest of his work is also quite good. Pick up something with a good translation of the Heart Sutra. Alan Watts' The Way of Zen is quite good. So is Mindfulness in Plain English, by Henepola Gunaratana. City Dharma by Arthur Jeon is worth a look. And pretty much anything by Pema Chodron is worth reading.

[ev4n]

Overview was the answer.  Thanks for the recommendations

[ev4n]

So far, I am enjoying Mindfulness in Plain English.

[Aziraphale]

Glad to help!

[94ssd]

Phenomenal, written by my sophomore writing professor. Essentially she went around the world experiencing natural wonders (the Northern Lights in Iceland, the butterfly migration in Mexico) as a sort of unorthodox therapy for postpartum depression. It's actually really interesting, because she connects it to the wonder we all see in small things in children and how we can (and I'm a bit tipsy so I can't find a better word) 'rediscover' that.

[Is it cold in here?]

I'm in the second book of Weber's Safehold series.

Touching, but the good guys are just plain too good, and people take mind-shattering revelations in stride.

[Thrillho]

I am having a second read through Chris Jericho's third autobiography, Best In The World: At What I Have No Idea and I am increasingly realising that as much as I love his work, and as much as his arrogance is justified to some extent... the guy really seems to be an asshole.

[Kugai]

Whatever I'm in the frakin' mood for

Granted, it's a lot of FanFic at the moment, but I do have Green Mars on the go too.

[Is it cold in here?]

Just finished "The Sociopath Next Door".

[Gladstone]

Halfway through The Last Samurai by Helen DeWitt.  Child prodigy seeks absent father.  Amazing so far.  No relation to the Tom Cruise movie. 

[Gladstone]

Just started "The Faerie Queen" by Edmund Spenser.  Huzzah for epic Elizabethan poetry!

The Sarazin sore daunted with the buffe
Snatcheth his sword, and fiercely to him flies;
Who well it wards, and quyteth cuff with cuff:
Each other's equall puissaunce enuies,
And through their iron sides with cruel spies
Does seeke to perce: repining courage yields
No foote to foe. The flashing fier flies
As from a forge out of their burning shields,
And streames of purple bloud new dies the verdant fields.
(Book I, Canto II, v. 17)