Topic: What are you currently reading? (Read 468526 times)

the_pied_piper · « **Reply #200 on:** 10 Mar 2009, 11:16 »

So i have finally finished the pile of shit that was 'La Pell Freda' and now have a new reading assignment, this time for my Spanish class.

Hence, i am now reading 'Relato de un náufrago', a series of articles written by Gabriel García Márquez about a mistake in a military exercise which was attempted to be covered up by the Colombian government in order to retain the heroic status of certain military personnel.

scarred · « **Reply #201 on:** 10 Mar 2009, 11:31 »

Dhalgren by Samuel R. Delany

Blyss · « **Reply #202 on:** 11 Mar 2009, 12:24 »

Aspho Fields

Damn good.

Avec · « **Reply #203 on:** 11 Mar 2009, 16:23 »

The Fountainhead - Ayn Rand

Siibillam-Law · « **Reply #204 on:** 11 Mar 2009, 17:39 »

The Jungle Books by Rudyard Kipling

and

Battle Royale IN FRENCH

Daft pun · « **Reply #205 on:** 12 Mar 2009, 09:26 »

The middle mind by Curtis White

It's not really suited for bedtime reading, which is what I've been doing so far. Interesting though.

Siibillam-Law · « **Reply #206 on:** 12 Mar 2009, 15:14 »

I'm actually having trouble finding good bedtime reading books, cos if a book's in any bit really exciting or interesting it'll just make me want to stay up and write. What I'm liking about TJB actually

ThePianoMan · « **Reply #207 on:** 12 Mar 2009, 19:14 »

Quote from: Boro_Bandito on 01 Mar 2009, 18:14

Flannery O'Connor's A Good Man is Hard to Find.

That's a really great one once you get into it. Have you thought about Dubliners by James Joyce? It's one of my favorites, and surprisingly readable considering it's written by Joyce.

Right now I'm reading The Brothers Karamazov for the third time and getting ready to dive into Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man.

Joseph · « **Reply #208 on:** 12 Mar 2009, 20:01 »

Quote from: Avec on 11 Mar 2009, 16:23

The Fountainhead - Ayn Rand

Why?

I'm in the middle of Nabokov's Transparent Things. Enjoying it pretty greatly so far, but then, the man is likely my favourite novelist, so I'm not surprised.

Picked up a recent volume of his translations of a number of Russian poems by a variety of authors today, Verses and Versions. Haven't done more than flipped through it, but I'm excited to dig in a bit more.

Read the first couple of E. E. Cumming's Six Nonlectures today as well. Really wonderful stuff. Highly recommended to anyone who enjoys his work, though being familiar with his work is in no way essential to enjoying these 'socalled nonlectures.'

Also been reading through a variety of Gogol's works. Plays, stories, and I have Dead Souls waiting for me.

As far as poetry goes, I read a scattering from A Stone Diary by Pat Lowther and Siegried Sassoon's war poems today. Pat Lowther's work is heartbreakingly beatiful, but also rather sad. Hard to explain, but if you ever happen to chance upon a volume of her poetry in a used bookstore, take a moment to flip through it.

Quote from: Inlander on 05 Jan 2009, 06:11

Following discussions earlier in this thread, I'm reading No Fond Return of Love by Barbara Pym. I regret to say that about a hundred pages in, I'm not really enjoying it all that much. I find the characters rather irritating, and the plot rather overly reliant on coincidence. But I'll finish it, and I've got Excellent Women by her too so I'll give that a go, before I dismiss her entirely.

How did you find No Fond Return of Love upon finishing it? It's one I've yet to read, and I'm interested to hear your impressions, given that I really quite like your taste. Did you ever get around to Excellent Women?

Inlander · « **Reply #209 on:** 12 Mar 2009, 21:42 »

I haven't read Excellent Women yet. To be honest the only strong emotion I felt at finishing No Fond Return of Love was relief that I could move onto something I'd enjoy. I must admit that my expectations were heightened by the blurb, which compared the book to Persuasion, which I adore.

BeoPuppy · « **Reply #210 on:** 13 Mar 2009, 08:02 »

Just finished Darkly Dreaming Dexter.

Probably going to swing by a bookstore after work. No clue as to what to get, though.

Blyss · « **Reply #211 on:** 13 Mar 2009, 11:27 »

I recently read all three of the Dexter's. I like them - and I like the series on Showtime, though I like them as seperate entities. Good books though.

Avec · « **Reply #212 on:** 13 Mar 2009, 22:30 »

Quote from: Dark Flame on 12 Mar 2009, 20:01

Quote from: Avec on 11 Mar 2009, 16:23
The Fountainhead - Ayn Rand
Why?

I think she's a fantastic writer and I enjoy her views on a laissez faire structure.

I've also been reading some of Nietzsche's philosophy and Aristotle's Political anthology.

Great web-site for you philosophical nerds. (Menu on top right hand corner)

Quote

http://www.davemckay.co.uk/philosophy/nietzsche/

Surgoshan · « **Reply #213 on:** 13 Mar 2009, 22:53 »

Let's see... Avec, you're... 17?

Tom · « **Reply #214 on:** 14 Mar 2009, 00:32 »

Quote from: Avec on 13 Mar 2009, 22:30

I think she's a fantastic writer...

Really, I'm curious to know why you think this - assuming that by 'writer' you're referring to style. I've found "romantic realism" to have been done so much better by other authors who managed to integrate their ideas and themes easily into the novel's fabric instead of leaving it as a thick layer of caked-on mud.

TheFuriousWombat · « **Reply #215 on:** 14 Mar 2009, 11:37 »

Quote from: Dark Flame on 12 Mar 2009, 20:01

Also been reading through a variety of Gogol's works. Plays, stories, and I have Dead Souls waiting for me.

I love Gogol so much. A brilliant, zany writer to be sure. Dead Souls is a treat. You should be excited!
Speaking of brilliant, zany writers, I recently plunged into Thomas Pynchon's Mason and Dixon. As far as complexity goes, it's Pynchon most accesible book. It's also probably his best. It's a magnificent, immense, sprawling book that is lucid and insane and honestly a true delight. Pynchon is a masterful writer and, towering as Gravity's Rainbow might be, I feel this book is the one that proves that before his others. It's also interesting to see an obvious source of inspiration for Neil Stephenson's Baroque Cylce which, while certainly less well written than Mason and Dixon, owes it a stylistic debt.

Avec · « **Reply #216 on:** 14 Mar 2009, 13:45 »

Quote from: Surgoshan on 13 Mar 2009, 22:53

Let's see... Avec, you're... 17?

Fifteen.

Siibillam-Law · « **Reply #217 on:** 15 Mar 2009, 01:14 »

figured

Tom · « **Reply #218 on:** 15 Mar 2009, 01:43 »

ooooh, burn.

I'm actually not having a go at you for liking Ayn Rand

Avec · « **Reply #219 on:** 17 Mar 2009, 19:42 »

I guess I'm not allowed to develop an opinion until I reach my 30's, at which point I can logically lurk and post my thoughts on Ayn Rand.

Joseph · « **Reply #220 on:** 17 Mar 2009, 19:45 »

Liking Ayn Rand is not any better if you are thirty.

It just makes even less sense.

Siibillam-Law · « **Reply #221 on:** 18 Mar 2009, 13:16 »

Alright Atlas Shrugged wasn't too bad. I Daresay I did enjoy it, after forcing myself to read the first 300 pages, it got a bit easier.Much like when I tried to read Pride and Prejudice, although I forced myself to go through the entire book

That Liz Bennett's a bitch

Dollface · « **Reply #222 on:** 18 Mar 2009, 14:54 »

Serial Killers: The Method and Madness of Monsters by Peter Vronsky

Tom · « **Reply #223 on:** 18 Mar 2009, 22:45 »

Empire: How Britain Made the World by Nial Fergusson. Insofar, a balanced view on the economic legacy of British Imperialism.

Alex C · « **Reply #224 on:** 18 Mar 2009, 23:03 »

Jesus shit. Ayn Rand.

Damn it guys, I've gone like, a month without crapping on her on this forum. Why must you tempt me forums?

Anyway, I'm reading Salt: A World History

BeoPuppy · « **Reply #225 on:** 19 Mar 2009, 01:30 »

Done with Dexter. On to Rushdy. Midnight's Children to be exact. I have the sneaking suspicion that this book might be smarter than its reader ...

Zingoleb · « **Reply #226 on:** 22 Jun 2010, 09:35 »

Hey guys, is it okay if I bring this back? I was thinking about making a thread like this last night and decided to search, because there was bound to be one.

Anyways, I just finished a book called "Field Notes on the Compassionate Life" by Marc Ian Barasch.

scarred · « **Reply #227 on:** 22 Jun 2010, 14:08 »

recently started fellowship of the ring again

wee

onewheelwizzard · « **Reply #228 on:** 22 Jun 2010, 14:17 »

Quote from: Scandanavian War Machine on 04 Mar 2009, 16:30

Quote from: Jeans on 04 Mar 2009, 04:53
Quote from: Puki on 05 Jan 2009, 03:12
Olympos - Dan Simmons

I started this yesterday.

So cool.

i am three-quarters of the way through this right now.

shit is ridiculous! oh man

p.s. have you read the Hyperion books? if not, they should probably be next on your to-do list because that shit is so fucking epic that it hurts.

Dan Simmons is so fucking good

I'm working on "Boneshaker" by Cherie Priest right now (it's described as a "steampunk-zombie-airship adventure" on the front and Warren Ellis really likes it apparently) and I just finished "The Arcanum" by Thomas Wheeler (in which Arthur Conan Doyle, Marie Laveau, H.P. Lovecraft, and Harry Houdini need to get together to save the world). I'm on kind of an awesome easy-reading novel kick right now.

Scandanavian War Machine · « **Reply #229 on:** 22 Jun 2010, 16:11 »

I read a short, very positive review-blurb about that "Boneshaker" book somewhere a little while back and it sounds very interesting. I might have to check that out.

Beren · « **Reply #230 on:** 22 Jun 2010, 22:40 »

Quote from: BeoPuppy on 19 Mar 2009, 01:30

Done with Dexter. On to Rushdy. Midnight's Children to be exact. I have the sneaking suspicion that this book might be smarter than its reader ...

Rushdie makes everyone feel that way, and we're all probably right.

onewheelwizzard · « **Reply #231 on:** 24 Jun 2010, 13:24 »

Quote from: Scandanavian War Machine on 22 Jun 2010, 16:11

I read a short, very positive review-blurb about that "Boneshaker" book somewhere a little while back and it sounds very interesting. I might have to check that out.

I just finished it. It's fun, it keeps the pages turning, and it's easy to see how it could get made into an AWESOME movie. It's kinda predictable, but nothing about it is poorly done. It's not a hack job or anything. If you're into steampunk, it's definitely a tasty morsel.

Zingoleb · « **Reply #232 on:** 25 Jun 2010, 08:27 »

I've been casually reading "A Scanner Darkly" by Phillip K. Dick, which happens to be the first brush I've had with him.

Coward · « **Reply #233 on:** 25 Jun 2010, 12:31 »

You may wish to try The Man in the High Castle by Dick as well. It's an alternate-history novel set a decade or so after the end of the Second World War where the Axis powers won and divided the world between them. Whilst not the sci-fi he is widely known for, I found it a well thought out and executed piece of literature with an interesting take on cultural subservience.

Zingoleb · « **Reply #234 on:** 25 Jun 2010, 14:53 »

If I can I'll keep it in mind. The library has...hundreds, probably thousands of books for sale in the basement, a bagful for a dollar, so I usually just buy whatever I can get there.

scarred · « **Reply #235 on:** 25 Jun 2010, 16:27 »

It seems like roughly 70% of all alternate history books involve the Axis Powers winning World War II. Which is boring as fuck when you think about what could be done with tinkering with early western civilizations' development, like Rome, Greece, etc.

jimbunny · « **Reply #236 on:** 25 Jun 2010, 17:40 »

Portrait of a Lady, by Henry James

It's like reading Jane Austen, or Charlotte Bronte. Except better.

De_El · « **Reply #237 on:** 25 Jun 2010, 18:20 »

Quote from: scarred on 25 Jun 2010, 16:27

It seems like roughly 70% of all alternate history books involve the Axis Powers winning World War II. Which is boring as fuck when you think about what could be done with tinkering with early western civilizations' development, like Rome, Greece, etc.

That may be so, but if yr gonna give a shit about any of them, I'd hand the prize The Man in the High Castle. It may ostensibly be about Axis powers winning WWII, but it's ultimately stranger than that.

It's really easy for me to say that, though. I've never read any other alternate WWII-outcome books. I don't think. If I have they weren't very memorable.

scarred · « **Reply #238 on:** 25 Jun 2010, 18:59 »

I'm sure there are a couple brilliant ones that started the trend, like how Tolkien is the babydaddy of every epic fantasy novel ever, but there's so many now it's hard to care about anything but the original.

De_El · « **Reply #239 on:** 25 Jun 2010, 20:40 »

Right! I was trying to think of what might be the original of that particular trend though, and I got nuffin. Is there such a thing? I dunno if it's originals doin it rite the first time so much as the occasional excellent writer taking an obvious idea and going awesome places with it.

scarred · « **Reply #240 on:** 25 Jun 2010, 20:51 »

some wiki skimming has led me to believe it started in 1845 with nathaniel hawthorne!

h.g. wells also hit that shit up.

but alternate history as we know it didn't really take off until the late 80s/early 90s, the most notable of which appears to be harry turtledove's worldwar series?

i have no idea and i am past the limit of my caring now. haha

De_El · « **Reply #241 on:** 25 Jun 2010, 20:57 »

yeah see i did the requisite wiki skimming but it did not seem interesting like at all

scarred · « **Reply #242 on:** 25 Jun 2010, 21:01 »

back on topic now

i am halfway through fellowship of the ring! it's going quicker than i remember, but that kinda makes sense seeing as how last time i read it i was 12.

and boy tolkien can't write dialogue for shit!

still enjoying it a lot though.

Ikrik · « **Reply #243 on:** 26 Jun 2010, 02:36 »

I just finished Candide, and before that I read River Out of Eden and the God Delusion, all of which were fantastic.

Currently I'm slowly reading Necronomicon by H.P. Lovecraft and wow, that man has one of the densest writing styles I've ever read, I love reading him but it takes a while to finish even just a short story. And I'm also reading Behind the Pink Curtain which is a book all about Japan's Pink Cinema, it's really interesting read even if the subject matter is not for everyone.

Avec · « **Reply #244 on:** 27 Jun 2010, 08:57 »

So I've put off all my personal books for my summer reading, and it goes like this:

1. Crime and Punishment - Fyodor Dostoevsky
2. Hardball : How Politics Is Played Told By One Who Knows The Game - Chris Mathews
3. The World Is Flat - Thomas L. Friedman
4. Too Close to Call: The Thirty-Six-Day Battle to Decide the 2000 Election - Jeffrey Toobin
5. The Death of Ivan Ilych - Leo Tolstoy
6. Ishmael: An Adventure of the Mind and Spirit - Daniel Quinn
7. An Inconvenient Truth: The Planetary Emergency of Global Warming and What We Can Do About It - Al Gore
8. The Diversity of Life - Edward O. Wilson

Aside from classics is anyone else stuck with similar mandatory summer readings?

Zingoleb · « **Reply #245 on:** 28 Jun 2010, 13:13 »

I just started started a book called "The Lives of the Monster Dogs" by Kirsten Bakis. I'm about three chapters into it and will probably end up reading it all the way through in one sitting tonight.

smack that isaiah · « **Reply #246 on:** 28 Jun 2010, 14:23 »

I got Carrion Comfort by Dan Simmons awhile ago, after I finished his short story which led to it. I finally started it today. I'm liking it so far.

Kugai · « **Reply #247 on:** 28 Jun 2010, 21:59 »

Reading Anne McCaffrey's Nimisha's Ship at Course

Reading Robert A. Heinlein's Time Enough For Love at home

Ahhh the dichotomy

De_El · « **Reply #248 on:** 13 Jul 2010, 23:29 »

Read and finished The Three Stigmata of Palmer Eldritch, by PKD. For some reason I'd had the impression that it's one of his lesser works, but I think I may have liked it even better than The Man in the High Castle. It was really good, anyway.

This afternoon I started Siddhartha by Hermann Hesse. It's quite good so far; I have to stop myself from rushing through it. It's written so simply, almost like a fable. It'd be easy to finish it in an evening or something, but I sort of feel like if I did, I'd be missing the point.

Emaline · « **Reply #249 on:** 13 Jul 2010, 23:36 »

I just started The World According To Garp by John Irving. Mostly because I wanted to relive the days when I started to super get into book. So a lot of John Irving, and David Sedaris, and Richard Brautigan. I'm pretty excited. However, I must have lost some books while moving, so I'm done to one John Irving and one Sedaris. I'm gonna stop by the used bookstore before work one day and see if I can pick up any more. However, I'll miss the cracked spines and water damage on the others.

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Author Topic: What are you currently reading? (Read 468526 times)

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