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WoG posted:(with the last two not even printed in the US, though easily available online from british/canadian imprints). Incredibly stupid copyright law in the US means they can't be legally published until 2018 here.
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Aug 16, 2010 22:32
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SuperLobster posted:Just picked up Mary Roache's Stiff today. Heard her name and books mentioned a few times here and there and decided to check it out. I am only on the 3rd chapter, but I will say she does do a good job of keeping me interested in a topic that I might not normally by a book about. Also bought Spook so I have something else to go into once I finish this one. Stiff was awesome, but I really couldn't stand Spook. I don't really believe anything like mediums and ghost and such, so I was really just checking out Spook on the strength of the previous book, but it seemed like Roache went into it with the sole purpose of mocking those people and their beliefs; there was nothing like even-handed analysis, but, then again, she isn't a scientist. It just seemed like a lot of effort to make fun of people.
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Aug 16, 2010 22:53
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Just started Moby-Dick tonight. First chapter done, and I'm stunned at how much I think I already love this book. I mean, all he's talked about is the call of the sea, basically, but the language and the way it's written is enthralling.
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Aug 17, 2010 04:07
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toomanyninjas posted:Stiff was awesome, but I really couldn't stand Spook. I don't really believe anything like mediums and ghost and such, so I was really just checking out Spook on the strength of the previous book, but it seemed like Roache went into it with the sole purpose of mocking those people and their beliefs; there was nothing like even-handed analysis, but, then again, she isn't a scientist. It just seemed like a lot of effort to make fun of people. Yeah, I was thinking of skipping Spook, so I will probably just jump to Bonk or Packing for Mars next.
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Aug 17, 2010 04:13
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Skellen posted:Just started Moby-Dick tonight. First chapter done, and I'm stunned at how much I think I already love this book. I mean, all he's talked about is the call of the sea, basically, but the language and the way it's written is enthralling. I'm always amazed at how people think "really famous, enormous, well-respected, culturally important book ... must be slog," and yet whenever I start those sorts of books, I have the same reaction as you: "I can't believe this isn't just good, but incredible and really enjoyable." It's like we've all internalized the idea that great literature is this dreary sort of thing, even when we consciously know it's not true, even when we're always proven wrong, and even when we think "well of COURSE it should be amazing, that's why it's so important/well-known." I blame lots of things for this internalization. Particularly Mr. Carnegie.
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Aug 17, 2010 04:44
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ONE TWO THREE TIMES TWO TO THE SIX/JONESING FOR YOUR FIX OF THAT LIMP BIZKIT MIX
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 I've started my mission to read a boatload of sci-fi award winners so I began with this classic. After 3 chapters it's very satisfying and I'm really enjoying it.
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Aug 17, 2010 16:08
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Just picked up Perdido Street Station and so far I'm really enjoying the descriptions of the city, the different races, and the overall steampunk feel of the world the author has created. I really like his prose, and I have a feeling that I will be reading more of his books after this one.
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Aug 17, 2010 17:44
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Farticus posted:Just picked up Perdido Street Station and so far I'm really enjoying the descriptions of the city, the different races, and the overall steampunk feel of the world the author has created. I really like his prose, and I have a feeling that I will be reading more of his books after this one. Good, because his next one, The Scar, is loving phenomenal 
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Aug 17, 2010 22:26
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Just finished chapter uno of Neuromancer and I'm already loving it. I've experienced my fair share of cyberpunk via Deus Ex, Blade Runner, etc., but nevertheless the setting is new and exciting. I especially enjoy how down-to-earth the descriptions and dialogue are; how nitty-gritty the setting is despite the flashing lights and bio-mechanical advances. Should be an awesome read.
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Aug 18, 2010 03:01
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Skellen posted:Just started Moby-Dick tonight. First chapter done, and I'm stunned at how much I think I already love this book. I mean, all he's talked about is the call of the sea, basically, but the language and the way it's written is enthralling. I finished the first chapter and thought the exact same thing. I must've read the first three pages a dozen times just to enjoy the provocative nature of walking down a city street in a breeze. That same depth has kept me from going too much further though. Lolita gets a ton of praise around here, would anyone recommend it over The Crying Lot of 49? I begrudgingly loved the hell out of Gravitys Rainbow, if that makes any sense, but I've got a nagging sense I should check out Nabakov.
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Aug 18, 2010 06:01
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I just started Ringworld after looking for something similar to Rendezvous with Rama. Being introduced to an alien species that looks like cats was a bit... offputting. I wasn't expecting one of the classics of hard science fiction to have characters like that.
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Aug 18, 2010 14:06
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Holy fuckin' poo poo. How can 3 people mention this book on the same page within like 10 posts? Fuckin whoa. Rendezvous with Rama by Arthur Clarke and holy poo poo am I lovin' this. Took me a while to hop on the classic sci-fi train but I am very, very happy to be here.
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Aug 19, 2010 04:27
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meanolmrcloud posted:Lolita gets a ton of praise around here, would anyone recommend it over The Crying Lot of 49? I begrudgingly loved the hell out of Gravitys Rainbow, if that makes any sense, but I've got a nagging sense I should check out Nabakov. I don't really see why anyone would recommend one of them "over" the other. They're not notably similar (I can't imagine one would really color your reading of the other) and either way, nothing's gonna stop you from reading both. Neither is particularly long, to boot. If you just finished Gravity's Rainbow, take a Pynchon break and read Lolita. Silent Tristero's Empire will wait for you.
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Aug 19, 2010 16:12
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Crying of Lot 49 is like light beach reading next to Gravity's Rainbow.
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Aug 19, 2010 16:42
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I picked up a Norton anthology today (Masterpieces of World Literature vol. 1). It's crazy how much of the stuff in there is stuff I've been interested in picking up for a while - ranging from Ovid to the Koran to Milton. Thanks again for the posters who steered me towards it, it's a hell of a bargain for what it contains.
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Aug 19, 2010 22:56
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scuz posted:Holy fuckin' poo poo. How can 3 people mention this book on the same page within like 10 posts? Fuckin whoa. That is it. I will order it with my next Amazon order. Just too many people singing it's praises.
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Aug 20, 2010 00:45
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I am almost finished with Kitchen Confidential by Anthony Bourdain. This book is just wonderful. If you enjoy eating at restaurants I caution you while reading this as he tears the restaurant industry apart.
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Aug 20, 2010 01:26
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toomanyninjas posted:Stiff was awesome, but I really couldn't stand Spook. I don't really believe anything like mediums and ghost and such, so I was really just checking out Spook on the strength of the previous book, but it seemed like Roache went into it with the sole purpose of mocking those people and their beliefs; there was nothing like even-handed analysis, but, then again, she isn't a scientist. It just seemed like a lot of effort to make fun of people. Spook wasn't a bad read. Read it over my vacation last week. It was the first book of hers that I picked up though so I have nothing else to compare it to. She goes into it saying she wants to believe and given concrete proof, will. It just so happens that most of the phenomena can be explained by science. I picked up Stiff today but I don't know when I'll be able to get to it. I also picked up Better - A surgeon's notes on performance by Atul Gawande which has turned out to be very interesting and informative read. So much so that I went out and bought the other two of his books: Complications and The Checklist Manifesto. One of them will be the next read.
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Aug 20, 2010 02:26
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who cares posted:I just started Ringworld after looking for something similar to Rendezvous with Rama. Being introduced to an alien species that looks like cats was a bit... offputting. I wasn't expecting one of the classics of hard science fiction to have characters like that. Decided to quit reading Ringworld after 110 pages. The furry cat aliens made me feel skeptical about the book, and the extremely excessive misogyny put the nail in the coffin.
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Aug 20, 2010 04:48
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Now that I finished the last book in a long series and am energized for a bit, giving Neuromancer another shot. Last time I tried to make my way through the book I think I was too sleep deprived to process anything going on, already hooked on it this time around.
gay devil fucked around with this message at 08:18 on Aug 20, 2010 |
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Aug 20, 2010 08:01
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I bought four books earlier today (I meant to buy one; I can't stop once I go to the bookstore!). I am America (and so can You!) by Stephen Colbert (and maybe a team of writers :P). I've been seeing this one in the stores for awhile and decided that since it was part of a buy one, get one 50% off deal, it was time to pick it up. I just started the first chapter before work earlier tonight and found myself genuinely laughing out loud at the first few paragraphs. Official Book Club Selection: A Memoir According to Kathy Griffin by Kathy Griffin. Another book I've been seeing around for awhile, and the other half of the BOGO 50%. I love her show, and I think she's hilarious. The fact that's it's out in paperback now helped, too.  Boneshaker by Cherie Priest. The one book I *intended* to buy today, it's so I can read it for the SA Book Club. Artemis Fowl: The Atlantis Complex by Eoin Colfer. I was genuinely caught by surprise when I saw this book in the store. I am a huge fan of the series, but I thought that Colfer was done writing Artemis books for awhile. I guess not. I had to get this.
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Aug 20, 2010 08:08
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Just started: Just bought: 
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Aug 20, 2010 09:29
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I started Richard Morgan's Broken Angels earlier this week. It's the sequel to Altered Carbon, which I thought was a great mixture of sci-fi and hardboiled. But I am not enjoying the sequel nearly as much; so far, it's just a mediocre action story.
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Aug 20, 2010 22:04
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Just bought first edition of Philip Dick's Martian Time Slip. Nice shape:
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Aug 21, 2010 22:15
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The Engibeard posted:I am almost finished with Kitchen Confidential by Anthony Bourdain. This book is just wonderful. If you enjoy eating at restaurants I caution you while reading this as he tears the restaurant industry apart. 
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Aug 22, 2010 04:41
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Just picked up Fitzgerald's Tender Is The Night and, I have to admit, at about 150 pages in, I'm struggling to like it. I loved Gatsby and This Side of Paradise, but I can't get into this one; even by Fitzgerald's standards it seems to sentimental.
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Aug 22, 2010 14:16
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Just bought The Brothers Karamazov, Pevear and Volokhonsky translation. It will be the first Dostoevsky book I've read, I'm looking forward to it. Also bought Little Dorrit by Dickens, adding one more to my collection of Dickens novels, putting the total at nine.
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Aug 22, 2010 22:58
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Thalamus posted:Just bought The Brothers Karamazov, Pevear and Volokhonsky translation. It will be the first Dostoevsky book I've read, I'm looking forward to it. Also bought Little Dorrit by Dickens, adding one more to my collection of Dickens novels, putting the total at nine. If you don't mind, please chime in in the "What Did You Just Finish" thread when you're done with Karamazov. I haven't had a chance to read any of the Pevear and Volokhonsky translations yet, but they've obviously gotten spectacular reviews, and Karamazov is either my personal favorite work of literature or very close to it. I had been waiting for their Pasternak translation forthcoming in October, but depending on your thoughts I may jump in and tackle this one first.
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Aug 23, 2010 01:17
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Just bought Isaac Asimov - Complete Robot Gabriel Garcia Marquez - One Hundred Years (Already own this) Patrick White - Voss Albert Camus - The Stranger Matthew Collin - Altered State, The story of ecstasy culture and acid house Ben Mezrich - Rigged Adrian Ceaser - The White, last days antarctic journeys of scott and mawson 1911-1913 Charles Dickins - Oliver Twist Stephen King - Needful Things, IT, and Nightmares & Dreamscapes all for $5! I would love opinions on any of these because I only know about One hundred years, IT and Oliver Twist.
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Aug 23, 2010 05:19
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Folderol posted:If you don't mind, please chime in in the "What Did You Just Finish" thread when you're done with Karamazov. I haven't had a chance to read any of the Pevear and Volokhonsky translations yet, but they've obviously gotten spectacular reviews, and Karamazov is either my personal favorite work of literature or very close to it. I had been waiting for their Pasternak translation forthcoming in October, but depending on your thoughts I may jump in and tackle this one first. Sure. I won't really be able to give comparisons with other translations, but I'll let you know what I think of this one on its own.
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Aug 23, 2010 17:59
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Demons by Dostoevsky and Robert Service's biography of Trotsky. I am definately on a Russia kick
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Aug 24, 2010 21:40
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Began the first book of The Night Angel trilogy: The path of Shadows? I dunno I'm too embarrassed to look at the front cover for long in case other people see it. This book is such tripe. It's clichéd and animu and goonily misogynistic in it's treatment of women to date (sluts or angels. No middle-ground!). gently caress me I cannot make myself stop reading it though, it's like it speaks directly to the part of me that never stopped being 19. Plus it's not actually that badly written when he's not describing women, or how badass Durzo Blint is, or making up names like loving Durzo Blint. I have no doubt I'm going to finish this trilogy in short order but damnit if I'm not going to force myself through something literary after as penance.
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Aug 24, 2010 23:16
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Folderol posted:If you don't mind, please chime in in the "What Did You Just Finish" thread when you're done with Karamazov. I haven't had a chance to read any of the Pevear and Volokhonsky translations yet, but they've obviously gotten spectacular reviews, and Karamazov is either my personal favorite work of literature or very close to it. I had been waiting for their Pasternak translation forthcoming in October, but depending on your thoughts I may jump in and tackle this one first. I have this translation and was planning on reading it once I finished Bleak House. I'll let you know what I think about it, too.
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Aug 24, 2010 23:18
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7 y.o. bitch posted:I have this translation and was planning on reading it once I finished Bleak House. I'll let you know what I think about it, too. I'd very much appreciate that; many thanks!
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Aug 25, 2010 01:48
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scuz posted:Kitchen Confidential is such a great read. Didn't scare me away from anything, but it certainly deepened my respect and borderline obsession with the service industry. Holy poo poo, the stories!! I was surprised with the amount of dick jokes a chef must know. Oh and all the drugs Bourdain did. I mean he made it quite obvious that he did plenty on his show, but wow.
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Aug 25, 2010 15:06
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Just gotten Atlas Shrugged after a friend said it changed him. I must admit, I haven't seen a thicker book with such small font, apart from the Bible.
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Aug 25, 2010 18:09
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Tricolor posted:Just gotten Atlas Shrugged after a friend said it changed him. I must admit, I haven't seen a thicker book with such small font, apart from the Bible.  Anyways, just started The Windup Girl by Paolo Bacigalupi. About halfway through, it's pretty interesting so far. His prose took a little getting used to, but that's probably because before this I went on a seventeen book Jim Butcher spree. Now that I'm used to it, I'm loving the book. Slow start, but definitely picks up about 70~ pages in.
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Aug 25, 2010 20:05
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Tricolor posted:Just gotten Atlas Shrugged after a friend said it changed him. I must admit, I haven't seen a thicker book with such small font, apart from the Bible. Don't worry, reading simple, trite ideas and narratives makes a quick read.
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Aug 25, 2010 20:29
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7 y.o. bitch posted:Don't worry, reading simple, trite ideas and narratives makes a quick read. At least until the third section, when the book just drags.
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Aug 25, 2010 20:47
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Wyatt posted:At least until the third section, when the book just drags. Haha, yeah the speech is hell (I can't imagine anyone in America not knowing about the speech, so no spoiler for me).
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Aug 25, 2010 21:09
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