|
Finished Sutree by Cormac McCarthy earlier today. It was a pretty weird experience as the book keeps shifting from a rather standard prose to these bizarre heavily symbolic descriptions and nightmare sequences. There were a couple of points where I'd be confused for a bit when the perspective would switch over to Harrowgate. Not McCarthy's easiest book but enjoyable nonetheless.
|
#
?
May 15, 2010 23:51
|
|
|
|
| # ? May 29, 2024 22:35 |
|
|
Folderol posted:I think you'd probably like the Siva Samhita and the Hathayoga Pradipika. They're both also about inducing certain mental effects of a religious/spiritual nature, albeit using different methods, and are full of all sorts of wild claims. (In addition, if you're feeling adventurous, you can try them out without the complications involved with adding entheogens into the mix.) That sounds interesting, thanks! I just blew through Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas in a couple days. It's been a long time since I've read it, and I've got to say that it's much more enjoyable now that I've done LSD. Thompson captures the acid mindset like no other.
|
|
#
?
May 16, 2010 04:13
|
|
|
I just finished Darkly Dreaming Dexter the first of the Dexter series by Jeff Lindsay and the the book that inspired the showtime series. I wanted to read the other until I talked to people who had that said the series took a nosedive almost immediately.
|
|
#
?
May 16, 2010 19:25
|
|
|
Liza Ginnelli posted:I just finished Blindness by Jose Saramago. Yea the movie was so-so however I watched it literally immediately after finishing the book and I feel it was one of the most faithful book-to-movie adaptations I've ever seen. (Still so-so just because it's not easy to truly depict the absolute horror and degradation that goes on as the book does)
|
|
#
?
May 17, 2010 04:22
|
|
|
I heard about this book on a Simpsons commentary and after about 4 months my libraray finaly got a copy of John Swartzwelder's The Time Machine Did It. It as a great read. Very short, only 135 pages or so but it is very funny. Time Travel, hard boiled detectives, paradoxes... What more could you ask for?
|
|
#
?
May 17, 2010 18:44
|
|
|
Chocky by John Wyndham. Really enjoyed it and am developing a real taste for his stuff. There was something about the ending that struck me as incredibly bittersweet but slightly hopeful.
|
|
#
?
May 18, 2010 17:02
|
|
|
Just finished Dune, Dune Messiah, and Children of Dune. The more I read, the less I was into the series. Dune was awesome and by the time I got to Children I was bored. If this a common feeling? Is God Emperor any better?
|
|
#
?
May 19, 2010 16:53
|
|
|
Just finished reading Africa and the Victorians: The Official Mind of Imperialism by Ronald Robinson and John Gallagher. Incredibly interesting thesis that the late Victorians were drawn into formal imperialism via the Suez Crisis in 1882. I saw it at the library while I was researching an essay and I had no idea how controversial it is until I saw it referenced in other texts. Anyway, it's very well written for a book of its type and I would recommend it.
|
|
#
?
May 19, 2010 22:26
|
|
|
I finally got around to reading A Handmaids Tale, after it was recommended by an ex about 6 or 7 years ago. It was a great read, and I was pretty much not able to put it down after starting it.Yarrbossa posted:Just finished Dune, Dune Messiah, and Children of Dune. The more I read, the less I was into the series. Dune was awesome and by the time I got to Children I was bored. If this a common feeling? Is God Emperor any better? I, and most of my friends that I got into the series, found God Emperor pretty dull. I pushed through because at the time I was invested in the series and that's reason enough to keep reading a book to me. Thankfully it picks up a lot in Heretics and I remember thinking Chapterhouse was pretty great. That said, you might want to just pretend that Chapterhouse ends the series, rather then leaves off with a huge cliffhanger, his son and Anderson do a good job butchering the universe.
|
|
#
?
May 20, 2010 00:43
|
|
|
I just finished Publish this Book by Stephen Markley. It's an interesting "high concept" story/memoir about the author's effort to publish the book. It's witty, compelling, and very, very funny. I'm not so good with the reviewing, but I really suggest you check out the Amazon reviews. It's an enjoyable read whether you're interested in the publishing yourself, of the so-called "Millennial" generation, enjoy self-referential humor, or ever contemplated inventing a machine that would let you poo poo and shave at the same time. (It has just enough toilet humor to make you chuckle, not so much to make you roll your eyes.) Actually, I really like this review the most. You should totally read this one. And then buy the book. (Because I'm selfish and want to read more of this guy's work.)
|
|
#
?
May 20, 2010 00:45
|
|
|
Just finished 2666 and it was one of those books that makes your heart hurt a little bit after finishing it. I feel like I went on a loving journey reading this book and plan on reading some more Bolano when I get the chance.
|
|
#
?
May 20, 2010 01:25
|
|
|
The Tao of Pooh by Benjamin Hoff. Taoist wisdom explained through the Winnie the Pooh stories, and vice-versa. I've read this one a few times over the years, and really needed a booster shot after the past month. e: Unfortunately, the story of Hoff's adventures in authorship is a real kick in the nuts. EasyEW fucked around with this message at 05:28 on May 20, 2010 |
|
#
?
May 20, 2010 05:00
|
|
|
SilkyP posted:Just finished 2666 and it was one of those books that makes your heart hurt a little bit after finishing it. I have 100 pages left and I'm dragging my feet for this same reason. It's been so incredible and this last part is fantastic.
|
|
#
?
May 20, 2010 20:25
|
|
|
senae posted:I, and most of my friends that I got into the series, found God Emperor pretty dull. I pushed through because at the time I was invested in the series and that's reason enough to keep reading a book to me. Thankfully it picks up a lot in Heretics and I remember thinking Chapterhouse was pretty great.
|
|
#
?
May 20, 2010 22:03
|
|
|
Fodder Cannon posted:I have 100 pages left and I'm dragging my feet for this same reason. It's been so incredible and this last part is fantastic. When you finish answer me this: What was your favorite "book". I was thinking about it last night and I have to say the final one was my favorite, pretty loving poignant, Archimboldi sounds like a pimp.
|
|
#
?
May 20, 2010 23:31
|
|
|
Just finished A Confederacy Of Dunces by John Kennedy Toole. What a book. On one hand the main character is utterly absurd and some of the situations he gets in are ridiculous and pretty funny, however throughout the whole book I couldn't help feeling bad for his poor mother. I had to keep reminding myself it was just a book and she didn't really exist. It's really readable too, the only time I have ever almost missed my train stop from reading was with this book. I also liked how he wrote some of the character's dialog. Having never been to New Orleans or lived in the 70s I don't know if they were accurate though. Whoa!
|
|
#
?
May 21, 2010 00:28
|
|
|
Further Tales of the City by Armistead Maupin (the 3rd Tales of the City book) It was good, just as enjoyable as the first two, with tons of laugh-out-loud moments. But the main plot was just a little bit ridiculous, weaving in the real-life events of Jonestown into a light-hearted serial about the love-lives San Franciscans. I mean come on, Jim Jones survives Jonestown - his body-double dying in his place - and moves to San Francisco and lives as a bum in a park, meets Prue Giroux, goes on a cruise to Alaska with her, a cruise which just so happens to also have DeDe Halcyon's children as passengers, whom he kidnaps, takes back to San Francisco, then gets killed by the Halcyon family's maid. I was rolling my eyes throughout most of that, Armistead.  (edit: although I suppose it's no more ridiculous than Mary Ann falling in love with an amnesiac ex-member of a cannibal cult.) Oh and I love Michael Tolliver but goddamn if his whole "I want a loving life partner but I also want to have sex with every man in San Francisco!" thing isn't getting grating... Hedrigall fucked around with this message at 10:19 on May 22, 2010 |
|
#
?
May 22, 2010 10:15
|
|
|
I think I broke my reading ability - I finished Eclipse by Stephanie Meyer (3rd Twilight book) and I haven' been able to read anything since. It's like it laid a horrible sparkly egg in the reading section in my brain and I can't focus! I just started this really good book too. Arrgh!
|
|
#
?
May 22, 2010 21:01
|
|
|
Finished Predator's Gold by Philip Reeve. It's the second book in the Mortal Engines series, which has a pretty cool premise... thousands of years after "the Sixty Minutes War" the world is an irradiated wasteland and cities have to move around on giant treads and devour others to survive. Even as I read the first book, I thought that the idea of a many-tiered mobile London chasing down smaller towns to destroy was an awesome idea. Predator's Gold didn't actually introduce any new concepts, but it was still a pretty fun read.
|
|
#
?
May 23, 2010 15:12
|
|
|
The Mortal Engines series is fantastic. I can never decide which is the best one. The next two books switch the character perspective somewhat, but they also greatly expand the scope, and it's all awesome. If I wasn't backpacking at the moment I'd say it's about time to re-read them.
|
|
#
?
May 23, 2010 15:21
|
|
|
I just finished House of Suns by Alastair Reynolds. I loved this book for it's massive, epic scope and scale. It was a very satisfying space opera book, and despite my initial annoyance at the weird idea of humans living thousands or millions of years, it was explained very well in the story. Now I'm off to start another big Sci-Fi (or is this fantasy, I don't really know) epic, The Eye of the World by Robert Jordan. Syrinxx fucked around with this message at 00:00 on May 25, 2010 |
|
#
?
May 24, 2010 03:11
|
|
|
I’m all better! I just finished An Arsonist’s Guide to Writers’ Homes in New England by Brock Clarke. This was a good book. It was about stories and storytellers and the modern American man, who lives in a sort of suburban impotence and the incident that defined his existence and the lives of everyone around him. Next up: Brideshead Revisited.
|
|
#
?
May 24, 2010 03:34
|
|
|
Xarb posted:Just finished A Confederacy Of Dunces by John Kennedy Toole. What a book. I had a couple of false starts on this one, but once it had me hooked, what a fantastically funny and poignant novel. I just finished my first BIG rear end book of the summer Cryptonimicon by Neal Stephenson. (With a title inspired by Lovecraft's 'Necronimicon', how could Goons not like this book?) This 900 page opus is like three full length novels, two of which are set in World War II and one in the modern day. As the title suggests, the common theme is code-breaking, and the technology and characters behind cryptography and crypto-analysis, both modern and historical. Sounds a little dry? It isn't. The stories are all strong, with very interesting, complex characters (some of whom are quite Goon-like). The conflicts are compelling and original, and the story moves right along, despite its massive size, as the three stories all intertwine (naturally). Though it took me almost two weeks, I was sorry to see it coming to an end. This book is NOT great literature, but it is a GREAT (intelligent, literate) summer read. Definitely recommended.
|
|
#
?
May 24, 2010 20:50
|
|
|
Soul Hunter by Aaron Dembski-Bowden and Star Wars: Crosscurrent by Paul S. Kemp The first one wasn't half bad for a warhammer book, my first warhammer book. It was extremely imaginative, but somehow left me wanting more. I then read Crosscurrent today, and was left very disappointed. Now I'm reading Triple Zero by Karen Traviss. Goons usually hate on her because she villanizes Jedi, but eh, I'm more interested in reading her own ideas on the life of the stormtroopers, something not usually covered.
|
|
#
?
May 25, 2010 22:13
|
|
|
I just finished Cory Doctorow's FTW. It was fun--I'd say much better than Makers. I'm not sure whether harder-core gamers would get off on it more, or less. I'd kind of hazard less. Read it via feedbooks, and think it could have used some heavier editing (typos and whatnot, but more so some bits of repetition that jarred me, where something would be explained in a "here's the facts" sort of section, and then parroted again by a character in the actual story-flow).
|
|
#
?
May 25, 2010 23:02
|
|
|
Just bought and read Elantris by Brandon Sanderson(guy who took over the Wheel of Time). It was OK, standard one-novel fantasy. The concept was somewhat original, but the characters were very 1 dimensional, as was the setting. It was his first book, and I'm told it was his weekest. Library borrow only.
|
|
#
?
May 26, 2010 00:16
|
|
|
Just finished David Mitchell's news book The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet. It was a pretty fun book, although it took a little while for me to really get into it. Once I did, though, I really got sucked in. I'm not sure what I'll read next. I've got Frederick Exley's A Fan's Notes sitting by my bed, but I might read something less depressing first.
|
|
#
?
May 26, 2010 02:45
|
|
|
Kraken by China Miéville. Oh my loving god. The last 100 pages or so were just hosed up. I am in love with this book 
|
|
#
?
May 26, 2010 08:01
|
|
|
Finished up The Red Tree by Caitlin R. Kiernan a couple of days ago. I hadn't read anything by her before reading this, but it made me want to check out more of her stuff. To me, she reads like Neil Gaiman, or even Poppy Z. Brite. It's eerie, which was a nice change of pace from the other stuff I've been reading, but it left a lot of things unresolved. Read it or don't, I guess.
|
|
#
?
May 26, 2010 12:46
|
|
|
Poe The Win posted:To me, she reads like Neil Gaiman, or even Poppy Z. Brite. Those three are pretty good buds in fact.
|
|
#
?
May 26, 2010 13:45
|
|
|
The Lost Symbol by Dan Brown yeah I know I'm tardy to the party. Heres the review I drew up for my site: Dan Brown has always struck an interesting chord with me. I can say honestly that I've throughly enjoyed all three of his latest works, but I say so with full knowledge of the slippery genre in which he writes. You see, I'm one of millions of Americans plagued with inordinately long reading queues. Sadly, I'm also afflicted with a mild case of cultural elitism, which means I tend to shy away from anything that explodes onto MTV -- or its literary counterpart -- the New York Times best seller list. Add into the equation my disinterest in mystery novels and it would seem I'd never get around to any of Brown's work. But here I am. Like its predecessors, The Lost Symbol pulled me in and kept my attention with one of the sneakiest tricks of all: an overabundance of real and real-ly-quite-easy-to-believe facts. Suddenly I wasn't just wasting time on Jack Bauer, Ph.D; I was learning! And while Brown again duped me into enjoying his latest work, he does not escape unscathed. The Lost Symbol continues the story of Dr. Robert Langdon, a hapless professor who just can't seem to catch a break. In this most recent work, Langdon crosses paths with a deranged fanatic whose mysticly-infused plot threatens to rock the world as we know it. Luckily, Langdon is able to team up with an intelligent female counterpart, decode the ancient secrets, and stop the madman before he's too late! Sound familiar? Brown is obviously a gifted writer with a passion for history. He also seems to be a shrewd businessman. Somewhere along the road he's found a mad-lib-esque formula in which to sprinkle historical landmarks, mystic orders, and a bevy of conspiracy theories. And apparently, it works. Upon further analysis, however, the formula's staggering constants come to light: The wizened former teacher and friend? Check The strong, intelligent, and coincidentally single female lead? Check The powerful and ambiguously-aligned authority figure? Check The deranged, deformed and disturbingly clever antagonist? Check Even motifs find a way of reappearing. Much like Angels' anti-matter and Code's bloodlines, Symbol wrestles with the ambivalent role of knowledge and technology. At heart, all three novels revolve around the use and misuse of both. Mimicking Ayn Rand's character-author voice (but mercifully, not her length), Brown even has one of his characters outline it for the ever-skeptical Dr. Langdon: "The mysteries are a flaming torch, which in the hands of a master can light the way, but which, in the hands of a madman, can scorch the earth." Although his latest work is far from novel (!), Brown continues to deserve a good deal of praise. Like his two previous works, The Lost Symbol is expertly researched both geographically and historically. Unlike The Da Vinci Code's more mystical allusions, this latest work directly addresses theism with a satisfying amalgam of philosophy and ambiguity. As anyone who watched a certain show's recent series finale can attest, that's no easy feat.
|
|
#
?
May 27, 2010 01:23
|
|
|
Choices in Vichy France: The French Under Nazi Occupation by John Sweets. Takes on the revisionist notion that most people were collaborationists to some degree. The author shows how most people reviled the Vichy goverment, and while not actively resisting, provided passive resistance in various ways. Also shows how the forced labour draft -- not patriotism or hatred of Germany -- was the primary reason that men joined the resistance.
|
|
#
?
May 27, 2010 02:25
|
|
man
|
Crosspost from the YA thread: Just read a great one: White Cat by Holly Black. I'd never read her work before, but by most people's accounts this is by far her best book anyway - and I believe it, because this was excellent. Was tipped off to this book by her BIG IDEA piece on John Scalzi's blog: http://whatever.scalzi.com/2010/05/12/the-big-idea-holly-black/ Holly Black posted:My big idea for White Cat came from me sitting around thinking about different models for magic. I had worked out a little of the book at that point, enough that I knew I was writing about a charming young con artist named Cassel, so I wanted something appropriate to the mood of his world. (way more over there.) I cared about the characters, the plot was well-put-together, and while some reviewers complained that they figured out some of the twists before the protagonist, I think that's okay, and we were supposed to. And the world and magic system were *really* well built, without being OVERbuilt. I'm really looking forward to another book in this world next year, and in the meantime am happy to spread the word about this one. ---- Also read and enjoyed recently: The Folding Knife by K.J. Parker - really interesting secondary world historical - that is, there's no magic, but the Earth is not our Earth, either. Takes place in a civilization very heavily influenced by the Roman Republic and Empire, with the very subtle difference that there is no messianic religion in this world. Very smart, carefully written, surprising and intriguing - an entirely non-guilty pleasure.
|
|
#
?
May 27, 2010 02:42
|
|
|
The Mantis posted:The Lost Symbol by Dan Brown I'll be honest, I started it but never finished it. The stupid plot and the squid thing aside, I disagree that he is a talented writer. In order to create suspense he manufactures as many 'non event' cliff hangers as possible to end each and every chapter. He does this consistently throughout all his books, in a very formulaic manner, which can only lead me to conclude he is unable to use any other literacy device. It's like being force fed hot chillies, after a while you become dead to any sensation and bordom follows.
|
|
#
?
May 27, 2010 07:20
|
|
|
Dr Scoofles posted:I'll be honest, I started it but never finished it. The stupid plot and the squid thing aside, I disagree that he is a talented writer. In order to create suspense he manufactures as many 'non event' cliff hangers as possible to end each and every chapter. He does this consistently throughout all his books, in a very formulaic manner, which can only lead me to conclude he is unable to use any other literacy device. It's like being force fed hot chillies, after a while you become dead to any sensation and bordom follows. Yeah, it's really hard to defend Dan Brown as a competent writer. People enjoy the formulaic, repetitive, pseudo-historical fact bullshit and Brown knows this and will continue to pump out the same story over and over while making millions of dollars. He's a talented author by Stephen King's standards, but he'll never write anything worth reading by anyone with more than half a brain.
|
|
#
?
May 27, 2010 17:47
|
|
|
Just finished The Fall of Hyperion by Dan Simmons and thought that, together with its predecessor, Hyperion, that this was a tremendous work. What impressed me most by the writing was the author's ability to employ tone and mood. Parts of this book left me genuinely depressed and, frankly, any book that can provoke a response in me at all is something of an achievement. This is modern Sci-Fi at its very best and most literary. I am glad other posters here encouraged me to read it, as reading just the first left me puzzled and unsatisfied. I would recommend the two books together without any hesitation.
|
|
#
?
May 27, 2010 22:32
|
|
|
The Machine posted:He's a talented author by Stephen King's standards, I very, very much doubt this.
|
|
#
?
May 27, 2010 23:03
|
|
|
O Rapture posted:Just finished The Fall of Hyperion by Dan Simmons and thought that, together with its predecessor, Hyperion, that this was a tremendous work. I'm so glad you enjoyed it! I've heard that some people don't like the two sequels (set 300+ years after Fall of Hyperion) as much as the original two books, but I really liked the 3rd and 4th book as well. Endymion and The Rise of Endymion. I'm hoping you like them if you decide to pick them up!
|
|
#
?
May 27, 2010 23:18
|
|
|
reflir posted:I very, very much doubt this. Stephen King posted:"If you wrote something for which someone sent you a check, if you cashed the check and it didn't bounce, and if you then paid the light bill with the money, I consider you talented." Essentially what I meant. Dan Brown sells books. So did Stephanie Meyer, and largely to the same audience (in spirit).
|
|
#
?
May 28, 2010 01:35
|
|
|
|
| # ? May 29, 2024 22:35 |
|
|
Martin Caidin - Cyborg The novel the tv series "The Six Million Dollar Man" was based off, it was pretty ordinary techno-porn. First part of the book dealt with Steve Austin's injurious in a flight test accident, which was a little interesting but then the second half just shuffled him off into super-spy missions. Also, every female in the book is there for the sole purpose of falling rapturously in love with our hero, to the point of it being absolutely hilarious. Ruth Plumly Thompson - The Lost King Of Oz These books feel more and more like episodes of a tv show, and this installment brings back Ozma's father in a rather entertaining way. Fun. Gregory MacDonald - Confess, Fletch The hilarious Flynn makes an appearance as the cop assigned to investigate the murdered girl Fletch finds when he gets home to his timeshare apartment his first night in Boston. Fletch spends the novel dodging police pursuit to chase down some stolen paintings for a friend. Chuck Palahniuk - Snuff Buncha dudes waiting to bang an aging porn star to death. Pretty standard Palahniuk, same old urban legend memes tweaked to disgust. Worth a shot if you're a Palahniuk fan, otherwise pass. C.S. Lewis - That Hideous Strength The final installment of Lewis' "space trilogy", it tells the story of the final battle between good and evil for the planet Earth as the struggle between Ransom (the protagonist of the earlier two novels) and an institute created to eventually enslave humanity. Rather dry, no real action, the least satisfying of the trilogy.
|
|
#
?
May 28, 2010 15:09
|
|