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I'm considering visiting LA (UK goon here) again in the near future, and i'd like to read a few novels that capture something of the spirit of the place. It's vague I know but when I think about it I don't think i've ever read a novel set there. I'm not sure what this says about my taste or what. Nyeh. So yeah, Los Angeles.
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Dec 15, 2010 03:28
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Rubber Biscuit posted:I'm considering visiting LA (UK goon here) again in the near future, and i'd like to read a few novels that capture something of the spirit of the place. It's vague I know but when I think about it I don't think i've ever read a novel set there. I'm not sure what this says about my taste or what. Nyeh. So yeah, Los Angeles. The Day of the Locust is pretty much the quintessential Hollywood story of people fleeing their old lives to pursue dreams (and failing miserably). Their Dogs Came with Them by Helena Maria Viramontes is a great read that's a really interesting depiction of latino life in '60s LA.
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Dec 15, 2010 05:08
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inktvis posted:Max Havelaar is so much better than it sounds on the face of it. Even the framing story, before he gets around to Java, has one of the great characters in Dutch literature. Talking about Dutch literature, it's about time you visited this topic.
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Dec 15, 2010 05:14
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I'm kind of looking for a book similar to "On The Road" or "The Motorcycle Diaries" but set on a continent that's not North or South America. The thing is, I just saw the movie "Encounters at The End of The World;" and hearing this woman talk about driving the length of Africa in a garbage truck made me want to read another travel book.
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Dec 15, 2010 07:15
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Rubber Biscuit posted:I'm considering visiting LA (UK goon here) again in the near future, and i'd like to read a few novels that capture something of the spirit of the place. It's vague I know but when I think about it I don't think i've ever read a novel set there. I'm not sure what this says about my taste or what. Nyeh. So yeah, Los Angeles. Alhough I've never actually been there; and if what I've heard is true. Then Bret Easton Ellis "Less Than Zero" Should be what you're looking for.
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Dec 15, 2010 07:17
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Perhaps too wide a net to cast, but if I enjoyed Harry Potter and Narnia, and want to read more fantastical adventures spanning multiple books, is there something I should keep an eye out for? I have already read the Northern Lights trilogy.
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Dec 15, 2010 20:27
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Centipeed posted:Perhaps too wide a net to cast, but if I enjoyed Harry Potter and Narnia, and want to read more fantastical adventures spanning multiple books, is there something I should keep an eye out for? Lloyd Alexander's Chronicles of Prydain would be a good next step.
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Dec 15, 2010 20:45
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Hieronymous Alloy posted:Lloyd Alexander's Chronicles of Prydain would be a good next step. Thank you, this seems to fit the bill precisely. Although I suppose it's missing that element of discovering an unknown world that Harry Potter and Narnia had in droves?
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Dec 15, 2010 21:16
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Centipeed posted:Thank you, this seems to fit the bill precisely. Although I suppose it's missing that element of discovering an unknown world that Harry Potter and Narnia had in droves? Well, you don't know anything about Prydain! You could also try Susan Cooper's The Dark is Rising series, the Redwall series, or, hell, Tolkien. Start with The Hobbit. Hieronymous Alloy fucked around with this message at 21:36 on Dec 15, 2010 |
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Dec 15, 2010 21:34
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Prydain's sort of based on medieval Wales and Welsh legend. If you know Welsh legend then you might have some sort of handle on it, but some stuff - like Gurgi - should be new. I love those books. 
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Dec 15, 2010 21:39
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Centipeed posted:Perhaps too wide a net to cast, but if I enjoyed Harry Potter and Narnia, and want to read more fantastical adventures spanning multiple books, is there something I should keep an eye out for? how about one of the other major series that informed the likes of Harry Potter- Ursala K LeGuin's Earthsea
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Dec 16, 2010 04:56
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I just finished Johannes Cabal the Necromancer and Johannes Cabal the Detective. I also liked Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell, which is kind of similar, when I read it about a year ago. Can someone recommend me some sarcastically funny-but-not-dumb fantasy or something along those lines? Say Terry Pratchett and you lose my internet respect for copping out.
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Dec 16, 2010 05:50
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I'm looking for some good books that give great overviews of different aspects of World War II. Particularly DDay, and the Battle of the Bulge. Western front stuff. More so strategy than first hand accounts.
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Dec 16, 2010 06:34
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zacpol posted:I just finished Johannes Cabal the Necromancer and Johannes Cabal the Detective. I also liked Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell, which is kind of similar, when I read it about a year ago. Can someone recommend me some sarcastically funny-but-not-dumb fantasy or something along those lines? Say Terry Pratchett and you lose my internet respect for copping out. So, you liked these? They're on my reading list. I'm thinking about taking them on after I finish the book I'm on now. Sorry, I don't have any recommendations for you.
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Dec 16, 2010 06:40
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zacpol posted:I just finished Johannes Cabal the Necromancer and Johannes Cabal the Detective. I also liked Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell, which is kind of similar, when I read it about a year ago. Can someone recommend me some sarcastically funny-but-not-dumb fantasy or something along those lines? Say Terry Pratchett and you lose my internet respect for copping out. Okay, well there goes one of my suggestions. If you haven't read any Neil Gaiman I would suggest anything by him, but specifically Stardust as it is one of his more overt fantasy stories. I would also suggest the Promethean saga by Elizabeth Bear. They focus on Faerie mythology so if you liked Strange & Norrell they should work for you. In the Company of Ogres by A. Lee Martinez is a fun little fantasy novel, very sarcastic and entertaining.
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Dec 16, 2010 10:18
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Where do I start with Charles Bukowski?
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Dec 16, 2010 11:36
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Are there any lists out there of what is considered canon for 20th-21st century literature (or like top 100 books or whatever?) I need some new stuff to read and figure that's as good a place as any to look for things.
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Dec 16, 2010 21:55
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ShutteredIn posted:The Day of the Locust is pretty much the quintessential Hollywood story of people fleeing their old lives to pursue dreams (and failing miserably). You're also going to want to check out Ask the Dust by John Fante. spouse posted:Where do I start with Charles Bukowski? For his prose, check out Post Office and my favorite, Ham On Rye.
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Dec 16, 2010 22:16
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ChirpChirpCheep posted:Are there any lists out there of what is considered canon for 20th-21st century literature (or like top 100 books or whatever?) I need some new stuff to read and figure that's as good a place as any to look for things. People are probably going to bitch about it, but the 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die series has been updating with new editions and the 2010 version has become something fairly solid. The main problem is by 'book' they mean 'modern novel', but seeing as that's what you're after anyway it's not much of an issue. It's not perfect, but for every Anne Rice or Paulo Coehlo they've included there's a Gombrowicz, Krasznahorkai or Cabrera Infante.
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Dec 16, 2010 22:41
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ChirpChirpCheep posted:Are there any lists out there of what is considered canon for 20th-21st century literature (or like top 100 books or whatever?) I need some new stuff to read and figure that's as good a place as any to look for things. Time did a list of ALL TIME 100 Novels that is, in reality, a list of the best english-language novels of the past hundred years or so. obviously it's not all-inclusive, but there's still some good stuff on there (not to mention some nice branching-out points).
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Dec 17, 2010 02:09
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Can anyone recommend any good biographies? I'm looking for some Christmas gifts for my Dad. I think he would be more interested in political figures, celebrities from the 50, 60 and 70s, modern explorers/adventurers etc. Thanks
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Dec 17, 2010 16:43
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Does your dad like Sinatra? James Kaplan's biography of him (Frank: The Voice) is getting good reviews. I haven't read the whole thing, just a couple excerpts here and there, but I liked it.
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Dec 17, 2010 17:59
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Rhaegar posted:Can anyone recommend any good biographies? I'm looking for some Christmas gifts for my Dad. I think he would be more interested in political figures, celebrities from the 50, 60 and 70s, modern explorers/adventurers etc. Roger Morris' Nixon bio is pretty sweet, albiet very detailed and 900 pages. Morris was in Dick's cabinet and resigned after the invasion of Cambodia, and talks about everything up to Nixon's election as vice-president. The NYT reviewed it more favorably than Ambrose's book on the Dick.
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Dec 17, 2010 18:32
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I posted in the chat thread but maybe this is the better place. Has any one read Master and Commander by Patrick O'Brian? Is the content suitable for young readers - specifically a sheltered 13 year old in a religious family? I was thinking of getting it for my nephew for Christmas but don't want to piss off my family by introducing inappropriate material into their conservative household. A little non-graphic violence may be O.K. but any sex whatsoever would be a deal breaker.
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Dec 17, 2010 19:42
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So I want to get my girlfriend a book among other things. She's currently reading some mystery novel that was made into a lifetime movie that she borrowed from a friend. She doesn't really want something along those lines at all. She's looking for something funny, but with substance as well. I got her Slaughterhouse five last year and she loved it, if that's any sign. Info about here, she's a nurse, she's 25, she's sarcastic, she's goofy, Filipino. I have no idea if these details help, but its worth a shot. Any help would be great! Thanks!
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Dec 18, 2010 01:10
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spouse posted:Where do I start with Charles Bukowski? Start with Ham on Rye, Post Office, Women or Factotum then track down some of his poetry collections if you liked the novels.
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Dec 18, 2010 01:19
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ch1mp posted:I posted in the chat thread but maybe this is the better place. Its been awhile since I've read it but I don't remember there being any sex in that. However, it is extremely heavy in old world sailor jargon, so much to the extent that there is a glossary of terms in my edition. If your 13 year old reader is bright, he should be able to pick up on it if he has an interest in Napoleonic history and old world Naval battle tactics. The violence iirc was just things stating that so-and-so lost a leg, this or that crewman was killed by flying shattered oak pieces from cannon fire, etc. No graphic Blood Meridian type gore.
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Dec 18, 2010 01:59
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ch1mp posted:I posted in the chat thread but maybe this is the better place. It's implied that Capt. Aubrey is having an affair with his admiral's wife, but nothing direct or even remotely graphic.
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Dec 18, 2010 05:33
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Rhaegar posted:Can anyone recommend any good biographies? I'm looking for some Christmas gifts for my Dad. I think he would be more interested in political figures, celebrities from the 50, 60 and 70s, modern explorers/adventurers etc.
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Dec 18, 2010 06:02
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Does anyone have a recommendation for a good novel that offers some depth and introspection, maybe reminiscent of the dramatic monologue in Shelley's Frankenstein? So far I have been recommended The Fall by Camus which I added to my xmas shopping list. Thanks!
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Dec 18, 2010 07:18
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Rhaegar posted:Can anyone recommend any good biographies? I'm looking for some Christmas gifts for my Dad. I think he would be more interested in political figures, celebrities from the 50, 60 and 70s, modern explorers/adventurers etc. Edmund Morris's three-volume Teddy Roosevelt biography just published the final volume. The first volume, Theodore Rising, won a pulitzer, and the other two volumes (Theodore Rex and Colonel Roosevelt) are just as good, if not quite as exciting. Roosevelt did a fair bit of genuine exploration (there's a previously-un-navigated-before-Roosevelt river in Brazil named after him, for example), so he hits both those notes, though he may not be modern enough.
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Dec 18, 2010 07:32
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Any good police procedurals where it isn't really about who-done-it, but the characters around the crime? I'm thinking Clockers, Lush Life, Mystic River....
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Dec 19, 2010 17:42
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Junkenstein posted:Any good police procedurals where it isn't really about who-done-it, but the characters around the crime? I'm thinking Clockers, Lush Life, Mystic River.... Criminal Minds is about as close as you can get to this for a TV show (unless you count The Wire which is another thing alltogehter) When it comes to books, it sounds more like a classic noir but you'd want one where it was the police department involved instead of a private eye.
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Dec 19, 2010 19:20
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Thank you IceNiner and PatMarshall. Very helpful.
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Dec 19, 2010 21:13
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Junkenstein posted:Any good police procedurals where it isn't really about who-done-it, but the characters around the crime? I'm thinking Clockers, Lush Life, Mystic River.... Go for the original classic cop novels by Joseph Wambaugh: The New Centurions, The Choir boys, The Black Marble the stories are excellent. Primarily they focus on the law enforcement side of things but they're ugly, gritty and realistic as hell. I think New Centurions is my favorite among the Wambaugh works.
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Dec 20, 2010 01:00
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A good friend of mine is going through a ton of classics like The Grapes of Wrath, The Catcher in the Rye, and especially John Steinbeck stuff recently. I wanted to get her something classic in the same vein, but I also want to be absolutely sure she hasn't read the book yet as well. I was thinking of Siddhartha, one of my favorites, but do you think it's too much of a deviation from her current kick? Also, do you think The Stranger would be too weird to gift to someone? I enjoyed the book but I don't want to weird her out what with all the weird poo poo. Please give me some recommends yo!
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Dec 20, 2010 20:04
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The Stranger isn't really all that weird, but you might want to avoid it if she's been churning through classics - it is, in the parlance of our times, Pretty Entry Level. I'd go buy her one of the recentish lit bestsellers like Freedom or something. It's enough just to say 'I thought of you and bought you this book of literature'. They're not going to judge the depth of your sentiment on whether it turns out to be an eternal classic or not. I hope that's helpful, though I suspect you probably just wanted to be told a book title, in which case go buy Let Us Now Praise Famous Men.
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Dec 20, 2010 20:22
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My wife liked the His Dark Materials trilogy, Dan Brown books, Dune, the Kite Runner, stories with puzzles to them, or where series of seemingly unrelated events intertwine. I'm thinking she might like Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell, but I'd love some other recommendations.
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Dec 21, 2010 01:13
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I’m enjoying end of the world novels at the moment: The Stand The Road Blindness Earth Ebides Lucifer’s Hammer Day of the Triffids World War Z I am Legend All great books (maybe apart from Blindness which was more choresome than the others). If anyone has other recommendations I’d love to hear them.
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Dec 21, 2010 15:12
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Good Guy Chucky posted:I’m enjoying end of the world novels at the moment: I recommended Wastelands earlier and I stand by that. It's a collection of apocalyptic short stories.
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Dec 21, 2010 16:20
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